Clouds Shroud the Light
by Eriks leadinglady
Summary: A world of peace seems impossible for Erik, Emma, and Christine. Murder, lies, and deceit cloud their vision of what is right in front of them... Will they ever find happiness? Sequel to RTM.
1. Wandering

**A/N: Welcome everybody to book two of Return To Me. If you have not read that book, then I suggest you read it before this one, otherwise, you may get greatly confused. Well, enjoy and pelase review as always!**

**Chapter 1**

I was running blindly through the silent streets of Paris. It was dark out, around midnight, and there were only a few scattered streetlights illuminating my way. My vision was blurred from the tears that were threatening to pour down my face. The only thing that kept them from falling was my pride and anger, but as I envisioned the sight that I saw only an hour before in my home, I couldn't help but let the tears flow freely down my face.

How could my mother have done this atrocity? What could have pushed her over the edge so much to make her murder my father? Wiping angrily at the tears streaming down my face, I continued rushing through the hushed streets. My first thought was to go to the Opera House to speak with Erik, for maybe he could be of some help to me, and possibly talk to Christine. No, he would not do that. Instead he would probably applaud her at achieving what he had wanted to do for over a decade. But still, I at least had to go tell him what my mother had done. I could only hope that Evelyn would not be there, for God only knows what "motherly" advice she would try to impose on me.

At last I reached the Opera House and turned down the alleyway that lead to the secret tunnel. I opened the brown entryway and hurried down inside, beginning my descent to Erik's lair. Running though the dark tunnel was not to my advantage, for I managed to trip many times over the numerous deep cracks in the ancient stone floor. I finally got to the staircase and strode up them as quickly as I could, but still being careful not to trip any more. Opening up the hatch, I climbed through and went up into Erik's home. Looking quickly around me, I saw no sign of him anywhere.

"Erik!" I called, still glancing around to try to find him.

I searched frantically around for him, yet still I saw him nowhere. Running down a walkway, I entered Erik's room without thinking about the consequences of doing so. Erik was not in there either, and to my disappoint, was apparently not anywhere in the Opera House.

"Where could he be?" I mumbled to myself.

Hanging my head, I decided to leave the Opera and go search for him. This time instead of going through the tunnel that I had come in through, I just went through the Opera House like any other person would. Luckily, there were no construction workers in the Opera to stop me or question me about why I was there without anybody else. In my head, I was desperately trying to think of any place that Erik would have gone, but to my dismay, I could think of nothing. As I wandered the streets once more, my mind swirled with things that Erik had said to give me the slightest clue as to where he would have gone. But in all my memories, I could not think of anywhere that Erik would go to if he were not at the Opera House.

Still walking the darkened streets, I walked past a bookstore, one that I remembered going to with my parents. I stopped and stared inside, noting that it had not changed much since I was there last. It was made of brick with two windows in the front, each displaying a couple of books. Then it hit me, _books_. Memories of a conversation I had with Erik not too long ago came rushing back to me. It was after I had gone to the bookstore with my parents, and then they dropped me off at the Opera House, still holding my newly purchased book.

_I had just entered Erik's home, holding my new book, when he turned and greeted me. He noticed the book that I was holding in my hand and asked me about it._

_"What book is that, my dear?" he asked while he pointed at the book._

_"The Strange Case of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde," I said proudly as I showed him the book._

_"Ah," he said while he took the book from my hands and looked it over, "Dr, jeckyll adn Mr. Hyde. A great classic about the conflict of good and evil inside all of us. Have I ever told you about my dear old friend, Nadir?"_

_I shook my head_

"_Well, Nadir is an old friend whom I have known for a long time. He saved me from the traveling fair. You remember that tale?" I nodded. "He was the one who rescued me from those horrible men. Well, he also loves books. I would say that he is one of the most literate people I have ever met. He has read all the great classics. You know… I haven't seen him in quite a long time. Maybe I should pay him a visit. He does have a home here in Paris when it's springtime. Perhaps you should met him some time; discuss your favorite books."_

"_I would like that very much," I replied, taking hold of my book once more._

I relived that memory, yet it did not fulfill all that I needed to know. Now I knew who it was I wished to find – Nadir – but where was he? I did not know where this man was located, all the information I had was that he had a home somewhere here in Paris. Still thinking, I began to walk once more, though I did not know where I was going. I was still trying my hardest to think of something that would at least just give me the name of the street that I would this Nadir on. The only other time that I could remember Erik mentioning Nadir would be the story of the traveling fair where they displayed him as "the Living Corpse." This was a horrible story that I remembered Erik telling me vividly. I also remembered everything about how he had told it, how he was so saddened and enraged at the same time.

During the end of the story, after Nadir had rescued him, Erik did mention the scenery that he had seen. He said that they ran through many streets, and then finally came upon a dirt road laden with many trees. All around there was green grass and they approached a hill with a big white house sitting on top, one with a porch wrapping all around it.

I could only think of one place in all of Paris that looked like that – L'eau. It was just north of here, and I could easily get to it. I remembered going there once with my mother, she said it was going to be a mother daughter trip, and I was looking forwards to it. And indeed I had had a good time. The landscape was marvelous, green plains everywhere, planted with budding trees. This sounded like just the place Erik had described to me. Luckily the trip my mother and I had taken had just been last year, perfect for remembering how to get there, for the path was fresh in my mind. I took the route that we had taken not so long ago, and I knew that I would most likely not get there until morning.

The trip wasn't a very exciting one, for no one was there to speak with, but at least I did have the moonlight to show me a few sights along the way. I had been walking for who knows how long, when I noticed that the sun was just about to set. I stopped in my tracks and watched in silence as the sun began to light the whole green valley that I was standing in. It was a beautiful sight, seeing everything glisten with the new light. The fresh dew on the grass and flowers reflected it perfectly. As I watched, I also noticed that up ahead was a little cottage village. A joy spread inside to think that I had actually found where Erik and Nadir were. Soon I began once more on my journey and I neared the cottages. None of them looked like the house that Erik had described to me, thus causing a sinking filling to now replace the joy that was inside me only moments before. As I looked around some more, my eyes landed on a hill in the distance, where a gorgeous house was set. It was white with many stories and a porch, just like Erik had described. Throwing all thoughts aside, I took off running towards it, hoping against hope that this was the right place.

I ran up the slightly steep hill, until I approached the front of the house and bounded up the steps. Standing at the door for a moment to catch my breath, I began to think about how Erik would react to seeing me after what I had said. But I shook my head, for I did not care what his reaction would be, or so I thought. Raising my hand, I knocked at the door, expecting to see a man that I did not recognize open up the door. My eyes widened as I did see a strange man open up the door in front of me. He was only a few inches taller than me, was mildly fail framed, but not exceedingly so, and he was wearing a brown suit. His hair was short and brown, balding a little in the front. The look on the face practically mirrored mine, shocked and confused.

"Y-Yes?" he asked.

"Sorry to bother you, Monsieur," I said meekly, "but you wouldn't happen to know an Erik?"

"Erik?" he repeated, a bit more shocked that I would ask that name. "Well, I do know one…"

This got me excited, causing me to interrupt him. "Does he wear a mask? Tall, brown sleeked back hair?"

"Why yes, he does," he replied, getting a bit excited himself. "You wouldn't happen to be… Emma?"

I was not expecting this, and widened my eyes in pure wonder and shock. "I am she. How did you know…"

But before I could finish, I saw a tall man appear behind Nadir. I recognized him at once, and seeing him again nearly caught my breath. He stared back at me, obviously just as shocked and in awe as I was.

"Emma?"

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	2. Memories

**A/N: Thank you to all of my readers! I am glad some of you have found the sequel so far! Sorry if this chapter is a bit short, but it explains a little, at least I think so. And I am sorry to say, but there is no Erik in this chapter... I know he is everyone's fav character... but... ah well. : ) And I did have an outline of this story, but as I wrote, it has now changed. But that happens, doens't it? Well, Enjoy and review! Thxs!**

**Chapter 2**

Christine awoke the next morning feeling dreadfully sick. Tentatively, she felt her head to see if she had a fever or not, but then quickly pulled it back feeling awfully foolish. For a moment she had forgotten any reason to feel bad at all, but all too soon the memories came flooding back. The attack of her husband, the murder, and then Emma walking in on it, causing her to go running off. She closed her eyes as if to make her wake up and realize that this was all a bad dream, but nothing of the sort happened. When she opened back up her eyes, everything was exactly the same as it had been only seconds before.

Slowly and stiffly she made herself get out of bed. Now that she was standing, she realized how much her body hurt all over, though she did not if it was stress imposed, or from the rumble she had had with Raoul. Even thinking of the name made her shudder. He had practically ruined her whole life, from the first moment he showed up at the Opera House. She then wondered if it had already begun at her father's house by the sea, but no, Raoul was just an innocent boy in those days, no trace of the man he grew up to be would have been found back then.

Her mind wandered back to her days at the Opera House, how at first it was just her and her Angel of Music. But Raoul had ruined that to. If it had not been for him, her Angel would not have gotten angry with her and taken her away down to his lair. No, before Christine had showed any love towards Raoul, the Angel and her had held an innocent relationship, no force, just them and music. His music was always wonderful and she had always fancied him for that. Raoul had not wanted anything to do with music, and ever since she had married him, he would not let her sing one note, afraid of what would happen.

Christine supposed that everything changed that day when she was not allowed to have music present in her life. She vividly remembered how saddened she had been when she had found out that she would no longer be able to affiliate herself with it. Ever since her days with her father, there had been music, but of course, Raoul took all that away as well. Christine frowned upon every moment she had spent with her former husband, for every moment of it spent away with music, was to be forgotten. Since that day at the cemetery happened, Christine was not permitted to visit her father's grave. Now thinking back on it, Raoul had always been paranoid of every place that he had ever had the trouble of meeting with or seeing the Phantom. Every ounce of her life was wiped away when he had taken away her music. Music was her life… but Raoul had to make himself her life and nothing else, except for Emma. At least he had allowed her to spend moments with her.

When Emma did disappear, Christine was not so sad that she was lost, but that now her life would only consist of Raoul, and that was horrid for her. Emma had been her one connection to the outside world, but then in an instant she was gone. Now that she looked back on it, Christine realized that she had been selfish to only worry that now she would left alone in her house and life, and not so much worried about Emma. She knew that Emma would be fine, but still… shouldn't she have at least been more worried to her well-being and where she would end up? Christine shook her head, for there was nothing to do about it now.

Slowly she made her way into the kitchen, but could not help but let more memories rush back to her here. Everywhere she turned, there was another thing to remind her of Raoul. How she longed to be out of here and leave all this behind. She knew that it would only be a little longer of this misery before she would be able to leave and go find Emma. Emma, she knew, would be off with Erik somewhere. Though Christine knew that Erik would not be at the Opera House, she still had an idea of where he would be. For when Christine first spoke to Erik alone, she had told him to leave hints to her daughter of where he would go if he were not at the Opera House. All she told him was that if anything happened and he had to leave the Opera, she wanted Emma to be able to find him and go to him if need be. Erik, of course, gladly obliged, though he knew not the complete reasoning behind it all. The next step for Christine to do was to show Emma where the place would be, so that she would at least be somewhat familiar of the place. This is where their mother daughter trip came in. She had told Emma that they were going to go away, just the two of them and of course Emma was just delighted by the idea. Raoul, on the other hand, had no desire for the trip to take place, but he could not refuse his daughter when she so much wanted to go. The mother daughter trip did commence, only last summer, and Christine was now glad that she had waited a little longer until Emma was older to take it, for the route would still be imprinted in her mind.

At last Christine was able to move again, after being frozen in the same spot for some time, reliving her memories. She reached out her shaking hand and poured the water into her glass. Drinking it quickly, the water somewhat calmed her nerves. Still this was not enough to calm her racing mind. Now she noticed that she had a pounding headache. Placing her fingers on her temples, she massaged them to ease the pain a little, which she did succeed in doing. Her head now felt somewhat better, and decided to drink some more water to completely rid her of her headache.

Now that she was feeling better, she decided to walk once more to attempt to rid her mind of her persistent memories. But once again, her mobility was stopped as she passed the room that held her piano. Of course, she was never permitted to play it, and she sometimes wondered why Raoul had allowed her to keep it at all. The piano had been a gift from the Opera, after they heard of her leaving it. Raoul had only wanted to be polite in keeping it and nothing more. He never once permitted her to sit down and play. She remembered one time when Emma had asked why it was never played, and Christine felt horrible about lying to her. She told her that the piano was not playable and was there only for decoration. Emma seemed to be satisfied with this answer and never asked again about the piano. As she began to look at the piano some more, she wondered if she could still play anything. She walked silently over to it and sat down on the bench. After only a few minutes of sitting there, she began to feel like a bad child and expected at any moment someone to come in and scold her. But nothing of the sort happened, which made her relax a bit.

Gently she placed her fingers along the long slender keys, afraid to play but a single note. But at last, she decided to play a piece by Mozart from his opera "Don Giovanni." She played as best as she could, but she did not manage to play all of the notes correctly. Missing a few notes here and there, though, did not stop her from playing. She continued to play it until she knew no more. Then when she was content on what she had done, she removed her fingers while she still sat on the bench. It felt good to her to at last be able to play a bit of music, even though it was not done very well. Over the next few weeks or months, Christine could not fathom how much she would enjoy to have music present once more in her life. Now that Raoul was indeed gone forever, she would at last be able to possibly sing once more. She knew that her voice would not be what it once was, but surely her Angel of Music would be able to fix that.

_If he will teach me…_ she thought sadly.

She did not know if Erik would teach her again, or even if he wanted to. It may bring about too much pain and too many old wounds to be done. Then a thought hit her.

_What if Erik had been teaching my dear Emma some form of music while she has been there? What a joy that would be! Wonder why she wouldn't tell me so… Perhaps she thought that Raoul or myself would not want to hear of music… but if she is being taught, then I shall be the happiest of all mothers!_

Hastily she rose from the bench, set on completing the task that she had set out to do in the first place, pack her bags. She knew that she would never come back to this place, which caused her to want to pack as much as she possibly could. Though she knew that she could not bring it all, she at least wanted to bring most of her clothes and perhaps some of Emma's as well. Who knew how long she had been without her proper clothing! She grabbed as many clothes as she could and stuffed them all into her luggage bags. After she did that, she then went about the house, collecting only the things that she considered to be valuables. Once done with that as well, she walked to the door and stood at it for some time, taking in her house for the last time. Then she turned from it and went out to the bustling streets of Paris.

She hailed down a carriage and told them to take her to L'eau. Settling herself into the backseat of the carriage, she prepared herself for the journey, and the meeting that would take place once it was completed.

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	3. Greetings

**A/N: Thank you so much to all my reviewers! It means so much to me! Sorry for the long wait, btu I just wanted to get this up before I go on vacation. So after this I won't be able to update until tuesday. So enjoy this chapter and please review**!

**Chapter 3**

"Emma?" asked Erik, who was truly in awe that I would come all this way after him.

I looked at him with sadness and joy. I was happy that I had finally found him, but was also pained still by what had happened only yesterday. How would I explain all this to him?

"Hello, Erik," I said politely. "I am glad that I have found you at last."

Erik looked stunned. "Why?"

I was a bit saddened by his lack of more complex questions, but I still continued on. "Something has happened."

"What? Is Christine alright?"

My eyes narrowed. Of course his first concern was for my mother, and it took all my strength not to yell in his face. I took a deep breath and continued onwards. "Well…"

But before I could continue, Nadir had something to say. "Pardon me, but would you like to finish this inside? You look awfully tired. Perhaps something to drink as well?"

"I would be most grateful, Monsieur," I replied as he ushered me inside.

When I first entered the house, its beauty nearly took my breath away. It's walls were covered with the most wonderful artwork, mainly paintings, and the inside trim was all gold. Then I went into the living room, where the fireplace was burning brightly and there were two big maroon velvet chairs sitting in front. There was also a patterned green area rug covering part of the already green carpet. The white accents in the rug particularly added more beauty to the room, and it glowed stunningly against the fireplaces' flames.

The whole house awed me beyond all reason; I had no clue that someone could live this richly, and by themselves too! I wondered if Nadir had ever had a family of his own, but when I stole a glance over at him, there did not seem to be any hidden sadness under his calm demeanor. I watched as he walked over to the one of the chairs and sat down. He leaned forwards and grabbed a teacup off of the coffee table that was placed in front of him.

"Would you like some tea, Mademoiselle?" he asked politely.

"Yes, please," I replied as I too went over and sat down in the other chair.

Erik was still standing in the hallway; he had yet to enter the living room after Nadir and I. I was unsure if this was because he did not want to speak with me or if he was still stunned that I was here. Either way, I would be sure that I would talk to him, for that was the whole reason that I came here. Yes, I could not forget that. The politeness of Nadir and the beauty of the house had almost made me forget the whole reason that I had come here in the first place. Perhaps it was good that I had for a moment forgotten all my troubles of the past day or so, but I still desperately wished to speak with Erik on the matter. Still I had my guesses on how he would react to the news of Raoul's death. First I could see his eyes light up at the mention of my father dead, and then turn to sadness for the pain that it had caused me. Of course, I would prefer to get this response, but it was the other reaction that I thought I would get. He would hear of the news and then jump out of his seat asking questions about Christine. Why did she do it? How is faring with a death on her hands? Where is she now? He would ask all these about how my mother was doing without even noticing the pain I was in. Indeed, I did not want that response.

Coming out of my thoughts I turned my attention back to Nadir, whom had just moments before given me a cup of tea. I did not fancy tea much, but I needed something to drink, and my manners told me to accept the cup that Nadir was offering graciously. After I had taken a sip of the steamy tea, I looked over at Erik who was now standing by Nadir. Nadirs also looked at Erik and then back over at me.

Placing down his own teacup, he stood up. "Well, I think I shall go for a quick morning walk. It looks quite lovely outside, and I do enjoy the scenery."

Before either Erik or I could object, Nadir had gotten up and went out the door. Now I was alone with Erik in the room, which for me was somewhat uncomfortable. I did not know what to say to him and what I wanted to say I didn't know how too. It was apparent to me that Erik was in the same discomfort as I, though of he course he was expecting me to speak first. He shifted on his feet uncomfortably and then moved into the seat opposite of me that Nadir used to be sitting in before he left. Once he sat there, the silence continued on until I couldn't stand it anymore.

"So how long have you been living here with your friend?" I asked casually without making any eye contact.

"Just since that night I visited your house," he replied coolly. I could tell that he had not completely gotten over what I had accused him of, though I myself still believed that he only wanted me because of my mother.

"Nadir seems nice," I said, still not ready to take on the subject of my fathers death.

"Oh yes, very much so."

"It's a lovely house as well," I continued as I looked about me at the room.

"I actually helped design it for Nadir," Erik stated.

My gaze shot over to Erik who was looking at the flames in the fireplace. I did not expect his skills to have traveled this far; I only thought he had helped build the Opera House.

"Really?" I asked, trying to stifle how surprised I actually was.

"Yes," he continued as he looked at me. I tried to hold his gaze, but found it too painful, causing me to look away and fiddle around with my now empty cup. "After he saved me and took me here," said Erik," the house was only just finished on the outside. The inside was completely empty and unfurnished. I took it and added more rooms and carpet and the fireplace. Actually, everything in the whole house I did. Nadir was horrible at it." Erik chuckled. "He actually wanted one room to be brown and orange. Two horrendous choices, if I say so myself. But alas, this is how it came it to look."

"Well, it looks splendid," I said as I nodded my head.

I could still feel his penetrating gaze on me as he spoke. "You know, Emma, I was quite surprised when you showed up on this doorstep. I truly did not believe that you would come after me or ever want to see me again." He paused. "So tell me, my dear, why did you come here?"

I swallowed hard. This was the moment that I had been dreading. Would he care about how I felt? Or just ask about Christine? I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I turned towards Erik and was just about to speak when a knock came at the door. My head swiveled to look at the door and wondered who would be out there. Surely it would not be Nadir, for he would not knock at his own house. I wondered if I should get up and answer it, but my gut told me not to answer someone else's door, so I stayed in my seat. When another knock came from the door, I heard Erik rise from his seat. I watched as he walked briskly to the door and opened it.

I gasped when I saw who it was and could only imagine Erik's response to the woman standing there. It was my mother. Why she knew he was here was beyond me and I was deeply confused. My brow furrowed as I strained my ears to listen to their conversation.

"Oh, Erik," my mother cried. "I am so glad that you are here. Is Emma here as well?"

"Y-Yes," Erik stuttered. "Would you like to come in?"

"Oh, thank you. I have had such a tiring day," she said as she walked inside. After going a few steps inside, she turned back to Erik. "Has she told you what happened?"

Erik shook his head. "No, not yet. We were just discussing that now, before you came."

"I am interrupting. Perhaps I should go," she said quickly as she turned to leave.

"I think it best that you stay, mother," I yelled after her, causing to stop immediately. "You of all people can explain what happened best. I barely even know myself. All I have are my memories now."

Christine turned back slowly and walked into the living room where I was seated. Walking slowly she approached me and looked at me with pained eyes. I held her gaze with a hard look, to let her know just how much I loathed her at this moment

"Emma, if you would just let me explain…" she began, though I interrupted her.

"And what exactly is there to explain, mother? The fact of the matter isn't why you did it but that you did do it! Nobody was forcing you to! You did it of your own accord, and nothing you say can take away any of what you did," I said fiercely.  
She now had tears falling down her face as she spoke, "I know that what I did was unforgivable, but please, if you would just listen."

I folded my arms as I still sat there. My silence told her that I was listening and she stood behind me as she spoke.

"Your father took everything that I ever loved away from me. My music, the Opera… I never told him how much it hurt me when those things were forbidden to me; I guess I was too afraid of what he would do. Over the years I let all that go and moved on with my life. Then when you disappeared, he… he developed a drinking problem. He would stay out all night it seemed and come home half awake and laying on the doorstep. He always drank and it seemed like there was never time when he was away from alcohol. But the other night, when you came back to us, he was still drinking. Even though you were safe with us, he still would not let the alcohol out of his sight. Then the morning of the incident, we started to argue and he began to get ruff with me. I ran away but he still followed me and it led into the kitchen. I didn't have anywhere to go, so I grabbed a knife. At first I only cut his arm, but he still pursued me after I ran off again. When he cornered me in the bedroom, he tackled me to the ground. I had no other choice but to use the knife. Please believe me, Emma. The only reason that I killed your father was out of self defense."

"You _killed_ Raoul?" Erik blurted.

Both my mother and I shot out heads over to look at Erik, who was now standing in the living room with us. Before he was standing a little ways back in the hallway, but at the sound of "Raoul" and "knife" he couldn't help but come into the same room as us. Christine looked at the ground and tentatively nodded her head. I stood up from my seat and walked over to Erik.

"My father is dead, Erik," I said coldly. I turned to my mother as I continued. "And according to her, it is my fault."

Christine looked up at me, baffled as to why I would say something like that. "What? I do not blame you for any of it!"

"If I wouldn't have gotten lost and went away, my father would not have gotten a drinking problem and attacked you!" I yelled back.

"Your father started drinking of his own accord! No one made him become an alcoholic! No one made you get lost! No one made him attack me!" she said firmly.

"Christine is correct, Emma. Your father must take responsibility for himself. You cannot take it for him," Erik said calmly.

I turned my gaze on him. Of course he would side with my mother! He loves her and cares only for her. His whole goal in his life is to make her his living wife. Not to like me, or care for me, or anyone else for that matter; just so that he and Christine can live in their own perfect world. No doubt she killed my father just so it would be all right for her to go and wed Erik. They just want it to be all right for them to be together.

"I can't believe you two…" I said quietly. I did not really mean for this to be said aloud, but…

"What do you mean child?" asked Erik.

"All you two care about are each other. You just want everything to be perfect for you two, no matter who you hurt along the way."

"That is not true, Emma!" yelled Christine with tears flowing down her face. "You are my daughter and I love you! I would never do anything to harm you!"

"Then why did you kill my father?" I screamed back, letting all my anger out.

"Because he attacked me! He would've killed me if I had not retaliated!"

"Better him than you, right? Why are you so selfish?" I yelled before I turned away and stomped up the stairs down the hall. Behind me I could hear my mother crying freely now, but I didn't care. She needed to feel bad, to feel guilt, about what she did. If I needed to be fierce about it to make her see that what she did was not justified in the least, then so be it. I would not stand by and do nothing after what my mother had done. If she would not even apologize, show the smallest amount of regret, then I would not show forgiveness.

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	4. Revenge

**A/N: Sorry for the semi-long wait for this chapter! But thank you to all my faithful reviewers! I appreciate it so much! Reading your reviews brightens my day. Sorry this chapter is short... but I didn't want to go on in the story just yet, for the nextchapter after thisneeded to be it's own chapter... so please forgive me! I'll try to have the next chapter up soon! Until then, please review and enjoy the (short)chapter!**

**Chapter 4**

Downstairs, Erik and Christine were left alone. Erik didn't know what he should do, or say, to comfort Christine. He always hated to see her cry like she was doing now. He never knew how to treat her, if he should put an arm around her to comfort her or just speak some reassuring words. But at this moment, Erik held no reassuring words.

He wasn't sure exactly what was going on. All he knew was that Christine had killed Raoul, and Emma was very upset about it. But what child wouldn't be? As much as Erik hated to admit it, Emma had loved Raoul. Even thinking that made Erik shudder. He would always try not to think of it, for he didn't want Emma to like Raoul, he wanted her to look at him as a father figure. Perhaps now that could happen, since Raoul was no longer around… but Erik knew deep down that no one could take Raoul's place. He learned that way back when he was the "Opera Ghost." As much as he wanted Christine to love him and get rid of Raoul, it never happened. Christine chose Raoul and left him.

_But maybe that could be different now,_ Erik thought hopefully. _Perhaps now that Raoul is out of the picture, Emma could like me as a father, maybe even love me as one_.

Erik's thoughts of being loved were joyful. He had never known the luxury of having someone love him. He would sometimes dream what it would be like, but when he awoke, he could never fully grasp what had happened. Love seemed so unreal to him, like it was truly only a dream. But that night, when he saw the Vicomte and Christine on the rooftop, he was a witness to love. Seeing that scene tore his heart to pieces. _How could my Christine love another_? he thought that night. He never fully understood it and he still didn't. When he thought about, all it did was torment him. Erik always hated to think about something he couldn't understand. For he was the Phantom of the Opera! He understood everything. Everything except love.

* * *

Christine sat on the chair, her heart broken. Some of the things that Emma had said were true, or at least she thought so now. She wondered if maybe she was really selfish, like her daughter had said. After all, she had not thought of Emma when she killed Raoul, only to get herself safely out of his way. She never wanted to be hurt again, so she plunged the knife into her husband's back. Not once, during that whole time, had she thought about the consequences. She never thought about how Emma would feel, or that she could go to jail for this.

_Oh god_, she thought helplessly. _I am selfish. I'm a terrible mother. I should've thought about the consequences before I killed him. But oh, he was attacking me and saying horrible things. How can I make Emma understand?_

She still sat on the chair, rigid as a rock, not moving. Allover she felt numb, like she would never move again. Slowly she moved her hand just a little, and found that it was shaking terribly. _Perhaps my whole body is like this. Am I still shaking? _She moved her head and looked at her body, and to her dislike, her whole body was shaking uncontrollably. _Funny I don't feel it_. She sighed heavily, hoping that there was something that she could do to help Emma. But her mind thought of nothing. There was nothing for her to do to help her little girl now. Nothing except to give her space.

* * *

I sat there on a bed, unfeeling to everything around me. I did not know whose bedroom I was in, all I saw was a bed, so I came in, locking the door behind me. Since I didn't wish to speak to anyone, I thought this wise to lock them out. My mind was racing about what my mother had said, yet my body was still. Staring unblinkingly at the wall, I wondered about what could have happened to make my mother behave in such an atrocious way. Perhaps Raoul wouldn't let her eat anymore fat, for she was gaining too much weight. This made me laugh, but the laugh was not my own. It was bitter and shaky, not at all like my own laugh was. But I knew that it came from my mouth, so no matter how much it sounded different and strange to me, I had to except that I was changing.

_It took an awful laugh to make me realize that I am changing, and not for the good,_ I thought relentlessly. _But what can I do? My mother murdered my father. How am I supposed to stay the same?_

But it wasn't just the laugh that made me first realize I was not the same girl anymore. To me, it was when I was yelling at my mother and calling her selfish and horrible_. I never would have done that before, if she had not killed him. But she did! She deserves worse than just being selfish. _I thought on all the things that I could do to make her regret the very day she attacked my father. My mind wandered from all the little things I could to make her feel sorry, to the big ones.

To be honest, I liked the big problems I could cause. But I didn't see them as problems, but as revenge, and to me at the time, revenge sounded so sweet.

I knew that I could do nothing now. I would have to wait until the opportune moment to let my plan unfold. And what a marvelous plan it was. It held everything that made revenge sweet. It wasn't missing a thing.

**It is a fanfiction sin to read and not review!**


	5. Sorry

**A/N: Thank you so much to all my wonderful reviewers! I am terribly sorry that I haven't updated in awhile, but I am having major writers block. I am having this with all my stories, so please forgive me! I just crammed out this chapter, cuz I thought that I should update. So I'm sorry for the shortness, but please enjoy anyways!**

**Chapter 5**

Downstairs, Erik and Christine were still sitting in silence. Both of them wanted to go speak with Emma, but neither of them knew what to say. It was obvious to Erik that Christine was in deep pain, and it pained him to see her like this. He wondered whether or not Emma knew how much pain she was causing everyone by being so stubborn. Of course, he, too, was stubborn, so he had no place to blame her for it. But still, he couldn't help but feel angry with her for not being understanding of her mother.

Erik knew Christine had no choice but to physically harm Raoul, for it was only self-defense. He thought that Emma would be smart enough to realize what her father had done, but she seemed not to look past that he was her father and that he could never had done what Christine was claiming he did. Erik, of course, knew better than to believe that his beloved Christine was lying. From the moment he first saw Raoul, he knew that that man was trouble. Never once did Erik trust him. He saw past his pretty boy routine to see the true monster that lied there. The monster that would one day cause turmoil in a family.

_Family…._

Erik no longer loathed that word; instead he wished that maybe Emma and Christine could be his family now. But the problem was Emma. He wasn't sure if she would want him to replace Raoul, let alone be her father. He knew that Christine would take him in and want to be with him. Even when he was the Phantom of the Opera, she had wanted to be with him, for him to teach her. At least until Raoul came along. He had ruined everything. All Erik's plans, his manipulations, everything was ruined. But now the fop was out of the picture, so perhaps he could live happily ever after… Erik scoffed. Happily ever after? There is no such thing... Especially when you were the Opera Ghost. There would always be something in the way. Raoul was now gone, but there would surely be something to take his place and create suffering for Erik once more. The police were out to get him, Emma was rebellious, and Christine was torn apart. No, there would be no happily ever after's soon.

Erik looked over at Christine, who had finally stopped crying, but her cheeks were still stained with dried tears.

_Will she ever find happiness?_ He thought hopelessly.

Tentatively, he walked over to where she was sitting, and took the seat opposite of her.

She looked over at him, her eyes clouded. "Oh Erik. What have I done?"

"You must not blame yourself, my dear," Erik replied.

"But I can't help but feel that maybe if I hadn't killed him we could have worked things out."

"There was nothing that you could have done. He chose his path and that choice was his downfall."

"Look at Emma! She would probably rather have me dead right now than Raoul!" she cried.

"You must not talk like that, Christine!" he said fiercely. "Emma may seem distant right now, but she loves you. You're her mother, she cannot do otherwise."

"Well I feel like a horrible mother," she responded quietly.

"She'll come around. She just has to get over the initial shock of it all."

Christine sighed. "I just don't know what to do. And I don't only mean with Emma."

"What do you mean?" Erik asked, concern apparent in his voice.

"I… I mean, I just murdered somebody Erik. Do you know how that feels?" Realizing what she said, she just smiled weakly. "I guess you do."

Erik pursed his lips. "I have killed many people in my time, Christine. I can't say I'm proud of it, but it happened. The first time I killed someone I was only a young boy. It wasn't really that big of a deal for me, since I hated all people. I thought them worthless scum who wouldn't recognize a real person if it hit them in the face. I moved on after the murder, and still went on to kill many people. Honestly, I'm not sorry for killing any of the people that I did. It seemed to me at the time that that was the only way that I could survive."

"How can I get rid of the guilt that is riding on my conscious?" asked Christine earnestly.

"I apologize, my dear. But I wouldn't know. I haven't felt guilt in a very long time."

Christine nodded her head slowly. "I understand, I guess. You haven't any reason to feel sorry for the people you've killed. They deserved it."

"Then we can only hope that Emma will see that Raoul deserved it as well."

"Oh but he didn't deserve it Erik!"

"He caused physical harm to you, did he not? You attacked only out of self defense."

"But he still didn't deserve to die!" Christine yelled.

"What you did was inevitable!" Erik yelled back.

"What do you mean?" asked Christine quietly.

Erik sighed. "You know that if I ever found out that someone was causing you harm, I would kill them gladly. If you would not have killed him, I would have."

"I'm sorry, Erik."

"For what?"

"For everything."

**It is a fanfiction sin to read and not review!**


	6. Sorry Pt 2

**A/N: Hey! Thanks so much for all the reviews! I appreciate them all so much! Sorry for another short chapter.. I know, I'm such a slacker. : ) But I think you all should like this chapter (especially Emily Singing Reflection) This is the chappie you've all been waiting for! Or at least, I think so.. But enjoy!**

**Chapter 6**

I was sitting up in the room, still contemplating on how best to execute my plan of action. Mainly, I was planning on doing it tonight, while it was still dark. I wondered if my mother and Erik had gone to bed yet, for I would not want them around when I got my revenge. Knowing that they would surely try and stop me if they found out, was what kept me from fleeing right now, but I knew I must wait. I smirked to myself as I thought of how they would react once they knew what I had done. I was unsure of whether or not I would really be able to go through with it or not, but since my mother had done, I was sure that I would be able to do so as well.

She apparently doesn't have conscious, so why should I? Of course, I didn't full-heartedly think this, but it kept me from backing down from my plan. A few times, I thought hard on why I should really do this, but then I remembered my father… I would never see him again, never hear his voice or anything... ever. This caused a hole to form in my heart. I knew that from now on, there would always be something missing in my life, something that would never be filled again. Once more, a raging fire consumed me and I began getting anxious. How soon would I be able to go through with my plan? I was afraid that if I waited any longer, I would back down. So, deciding that now was a good a time as any I swallowed my gut and walked over to my window, opening it silently. Taking one more glance around me, I slipped through the window and onto the balcony. Carefully I climbed down the water shoot and landed on the grass. Luckily, I was a good climber and had no trouble in doing that. Then I glanced around me to make sure that no one was around, and ran off into the village that was down the hill.

* * *

"I'm sorry Erik," Christine said 

"For what?"

"For everything."

"For everything?" repeated Erik. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean."

Christine sighed. "Erik, I… I'm not sure where to start."

Erik placed a reassuring hand on her leg, and searched her face for some sign, but all he saw was pain. Christine turned to him with tears beginning to run down her face again. "Please Christine, don't cry. You know I can't stand it when you cry."

Christine let out a sob as she flung herself at him and wrapped her arms around his neck, crying into his chest. "I'm so sorry Erik! I couldn't recognize that I loved you at the Opera House. I'm sorry that I pushed you away and left you. You didn't deserve any of it. All you gave me was your love and your guidance, and I shunned you! I gave up all your love for heartache. When I could've had a happy life, with someone who truly loved me, I turned it away! What kind of fool am I?" She continued crying into his chest, letting all her bottled up emotions come out.

At first Erik was unsure on how to act. The love of his life had just told him that she loved him back. It was a dream come true. But Erik was afraid that once Christine got over the initial shock of everything that had happened, she would leave him again. He knew that he could not take another heartbreak; his heart had been through enough. But here she was, saying that she was sorry and that she was wrong. How could he turn her away when she needed him most? Putting all his thoughts aside for the moment, he wrapped his arms around her protectively and tried to console her in some way.

"Shh Christine, it's all right," he said.

"No it isn't," she said brokenly.

"It will all be fine in time. You are safe now; you must not think of everything right now. You need rest."

"Will you sing to me like you once did?" asked Christine softly.

"Of course."

_There's a time for worry_

_A time for pain_

_But you are safe here_

_Do not be afraid_

_There's no need for sorrow_

_No need for guilt_

_I forgive you my darling_

_For now you are here_

_All is how it's supposed to be_

_Here in my embrace_

_The world is a perfect place_

_Tomorrow can wait_

_Tomorrow can wait_

As Erik finished his song, he looked down at Christine, and noticed that she was fast asleep. He smiled to himself. For now, everything was how it was meant to be. He could only hope that tomorrow would bring no more pain, but just a little peace. Christine had enough to deal to with, for now she just needed rest.

Erik wondered what Emma was up to right now. He listened intently, but heard nothing. He hoped that she was asleep, just as her mother was. She, too, had had enough to cope with. Even though he had not thought fondly of Raoul, he knew that Emma cared deeply for the man. For 10 years of her life she had lived with Erik, with no father. And after that, she only had minimal time with her father. But now she would never see him again. Erik sighed. Sometimes he wished that everything was simple in his life, which it probably could've been had it not been for the monstrosity on his face. But now he had somewhat of a family for the moment, which made him smile. Perhaps now he could have what he always wanted.

**A/N: I feel so bad.. I have to ruin Erik's happy dreams... : ( But if any of you can guess what Emma is going to do, you get kisses from Erik! Oh, and the song in here was my pathetic attempt at song writing, if any of you were wondering. **

**It is a fanfiction sin to read and not review!**


	7. Bruised & Battered

**A/N: Quick Update! Yeah! Well, I decided that since all my wonderful reviewers reviewed so quickly, I could update quickly. ; ) So thanks to all ya'll who review! Enjoy this chapter... (It's the regular length again! lol)**

**Chapter 7**

The next morning, Christine awoke still in her sitting position with Erik. She glanced up at him and smiled. He was still sleeping. She vaguely remembered last night, only bits and pieces. Mainly she remembered him singing to her with his angelic voice. After having heard his voice again, she realized how much she had really missed him all these years. She had missed his music, his voice, his talents, but most of all, the feeling of protection that he always emitted when he was around. Whenever he was near, she felt that she was truly safe and that nothing could harm her.

Quietly, she got up, careful not to wake Erik. She thought that she should check on Emma, since she had not seen her since their argument. Christine deeply worried for her daughter. It seemed that she was traumatized after Raoul's death, although what child wouldn't be. Of course, Christine knew how it felt to lose a father, having lost hers at a young age. She was very close to her father when she was growing up, and was extremely upset when he died, but she didn't remember being very traumatized, at least not like Emma was. Perhaps it was because a family member had killed Raoul. Yes, that must be it. Christine couldn't fathom how much pain she would have felt if her mother had killed her father. But… sadly, she didn't remember much of her mother either. Looking back on it, Christine realized that she had a lead a sort've broken life. Having lost her only family at a young age, being seduced by the Phantom, and murdering her husband. But through out it all, she never let it get her down. She was always optimistic on her views of life. Now, when it seemed like her life was finally coming together, she was sad. Her husband was dead and her daughter hated her. Even though she now had Erik again, she still felt like she needed something else to complete her, and that something was Emma.

At last she reached Emma's room. Tentatively she knocked on the door, but received no reply.

"Emma?" she called. Still no answer. Slowly she turned the doorknob, and was thankful that it was unlocked.

_At least she didn't lock me out._

She peeked her head inside and once more called out Emma's name. She looked all around the room, but saw no sign of her daughter. She opened the door all the way and ran inside, calling Emma's name several times. Christine stood at the edge of the bed, searching worriedly around the whole room. Her eyes landed on the window, which was wide open. She ran over to it and peered over the edge, looking for any sign of her daughter, but to no avail.

Quickly she withdrew her head and ran down the stairs, nearly falling over. But she reached Erik at a quick pace and was frantic to wake him.

"Erik! Erik!" Christine cried.

Erik was awake in an instant, and was surprised to see Christine so worried. "What is it, my dear?" he asked.

"Emma! She... she's not in the room and I can't find her anywhere!"

In an instant Erik was on his feet and took Christine's hands in his. "Christine, tell me what happened."

"I... I just went up stairs to check on Emma, and... and when I got there I knocked but she didn't answer. So I opened up the door, but she wasn't in there and the window was open. Oh, I think she ran away Erik! What if something happened to her... She could be hurt... or ...or..."

"Shh, Christine. Settle down. It'll be all right. Do have any idea where she would have gone?" asked Erik.

"No."

"Come Christine, we better hurry," said Erik as he led her to the door.

"Oh Erik, do you think she's all right?" wondered Christine anxiously.

"I'm not sure," replied Erik as he grabbed his cloak and fedora. He also grabbed Christine's cloak and handed it to her. Hastily, she put it on and followed Erik out the door.

Christine followed Erik as he walked in long strides, going as fast as he could.

"Shouldn't we take a carriage?" asked Christine.

"It will be better if we go on foot. The town is only down this hill. Emma couldn't have gone farther than that."

Christine said no more, but just followed Erik in silence. Her mind was now too preoccupied with what could have happened to Emma. She only hoped that Emma wasn't hurt or lost. She couldn't stand the mere thought of thought of it. The quicker they found Emma, the better.

It only took about ten minutes for them to get down to town. It wasn't very large, so they immediately started checking every store and every corner. After only a couple minutes of checking, Christine was already starting to worry even more. What if they didn't find her at all? The thought made her feel ill. She urged Erik to look faster, but he sad that he was going as fast as he could. They also asked everyone in town if they had seen a teenage girl with long brown curly hair, but everyone just shook their heads.

When Erik and Christine were about to give up hope, they saw one last alleyway at the very edge of town that they hadn't looked in yet. Both of them hurried over and went down it. At the very end, in front of a large brick wall, was something that made Christine's heart leap into her throat. She started feeling faint, and her knees nearly buckled, but she forced herself to move. She walked slowly forwards, afraid that her worst nightmares were coming true. When she was about 10 feet away, she let out a loud sob and ran forwards. There on the ground was Emma, unconscious and covered in bruises. Up and down her arms were bleeding cuts and her face was badly swollen. Her clothes were ripped and marks continued in a few places in her legs. Christine fell over besides her daughter and took her in her arms.

"Emma..." she whispered brokenly. "My poor dear child." She continued crying into her daughters' hair.

Erik walked up slowly behind her, not wanting to intrude, but ay last knelt down besides Christine. With a shaking hand he reached out and took Emma's limp wrist to make sure that she was still alive. For a moment he didn't feel any pulse, which made his throat start to constrict, but alas, there was a tiny pulse. It was very feeble, but it was there.

"Is she… is she alive?" asked Christine, almost afraid of the answer.

"Yes," said Erik. Christine gave a sigh of relief. "But barely. She needs a doctor."

"Is there one in town?" asked Christine hopefully, still clutching Emma to her.

Erik hung his head, and after a short pause replied, "No."

Christine let out another sob and clutched Emma tighter, afraid that if she let go, Emma would lose her life.

"But I think that Nadir may be able to help her, at least until we can get her back to Paris and find her a real doctor," continued Erik.

"Thank God."

"Here," said Erik as he held out his hands. "Let me carry her back to the house."

At first Christine didn't let go, but then finally gave in, knowing that she would not be able to carry her daughter all the way back. So she carefully placed Emma in Erik's arms and stood up, eager to get her daughter some help.

They walked quickly through the town, avoiding all people and were silent to the few who asked questions. They spoke to no one and continued back to the house. Erik prayed that Nadir would be in the house by now, for he knew that Emma would not be able to hold on much longer. She had lost a lot of blood and he was sure that she had at least one broken bone.

After what seemed like forever, they finally reached the house and bolted inside. Still with Emma in his arms, Erik went franticly around the house searching for his dear old friend. Erik was greatly relieved when he found him in the kitchen, making some tea.

Nadir heard him come in, and turned around. "Ah, Erik I…" he stopped suddenly when he saw an unconscious Emma in his arms. "Oh my… what happened?"

"We don't know," replied Erik, his words fast. "But can you help her? You're the closest thing to a doctor in town…"

"Yes, I'll do what I can," said Nadir at once. "Please place her in the bedroom while I get some equipment together."

"Thank you," said Erik as he turned from the room and hurried up the stairs.

Erik placed Emma gently down on the bed and turned to Christine, who immediately flew into his arms. They didn't say anything, but just held each other. Erik looked down at his poor Christine and then over at Emma. His mouth hardened and he swore that he would kill whoever did this to Emma.

Nadir entered the room, holding a medical bag and a bowl full of hot water. He sat down at the edge of the bed and felt Emma's neck. He swore softly under his breath and tore some medicine from his bag. He forced the liquid down her throat and then placed his hands over Emma's chest. He began pumping it forcefully and then checking Emma' neck again. He kept doing this several times, until at last he seemed satisfied.

"Will she be alright?" asked Erik quietly.

"It's hard to say… but I think so."

Erik gave a sigh of relief.

"She does have a broken arm though. Lucky her nose didn't break as well. She should just need a few bandages and rest. Lots of rest."

"Will she need another doctor?" asked Erik.

"No, no. I have everything I need here."

"Should we wait outside then?" questioned Erik, not really wanting to leave, but he knew that doctors needed their room to work.

"Yes, yes. That would be good."

So Erik led Christine out of the room, thanking God that Emma would live.

**A/N: Poor Emma... Wonder what she did? Well... both Sugar Peaches and Emily Singing Reflection get kisses from Erik! **

**Erik moans/ He kisses those two /they swoon **

**Okay! Well, we actually don't know what Emma did yet, but that was what she was originally going to do... But what happened along the way? Hmm... read the next chappie to find out!**

**It is a fanfiction sin to read and not review!**


	8. Attack

**A/N: I'm back! Finally, I know. Hopefully you will never have to wait that long again for an update, (Though some of my other stories are taking a bit longer). But I thank you all for your wonderful reviews. Keep em comin! Oh, and just to warn you, there is a bit of violence and blood in this chapter... but It's not too bad!**

**Chapter 8**

_Stab me in the heart_

_Like I know you want to_

_Cause me so much pain_

_That I'll become numb_

_Stomp me to death_

_And take away, take away everything_

_**Where I'm supposed to be**_ **by: Me... again... sorry : ) I just can't find any lyrics by other people that say what I want it to say!**

"How is she doing?" Erik asked Nadir as he left Emma's room.

"She appears to be doing fine, but she should have woken up by now."

"What do you mean?" asked Christine, clutching to Erik's side.

"She is not waking up... but she still has a strong pulse. I think… I think she might be in a coma."

"How long do you think she will stay in this _coma_?" asked Erik.

"It's hard to say, Erik. It could be days, months, or even years."

Christine gasped. She couldn't have her daughter in a coma formany years! "Is there anything to do?" she asked Nadir.

He shook his head slowly. "I'm afraid that there is nothing I can do for someone in a coma."

"What about other doctors? Will they be able to do anything more?" Erik wondered urgently.

"No, I'm afraid no one has the knowledge to do anything about it. The only thing we can do is wait."

_Flashback (Emma)_

_I had just reached the town, where all was silent; all I could hear was the whisper of the wind in my ears. I began to think on how I should go about this. There was not a soul in sight, probably asleep in their beds. As I continued to walk, I thought about who should be the target of my wrath. To be honest, I had no clue what I was going to do, and now thinking on it, I had absolutely no idea how I thought I was going to be able to this. There were just too many obstacles to get around. And if I got caught, then I would surely go to jail. All I wanted to do was to get my mother and Erik angry, but at the moment that seemed harder than it had before. Why do I have to go to such extremes just to get my mother angry? Everything made her angry! I shook my head. I could not back down now; I had come to far already._

_Because I was so wrapped up in my own thoughts, I failed to realize that I had walked straight into an alleyway. Here, everything seemed to be darker, quieter. That's when I saw something. I thought I heard clothes ruffling to the side of me. Squinting my eyes, trying to get them to adjust to the dark, I tried to see if there was anything over there, but to avail. I moved closer, trying to make out any shape at all, but there was still nothing. At last, when my eyes finally adjusted to the dark, I noticed that I was indeed in the middle of an alleyway, by a pile of garbage, to be exact, and on the other side of the alleyway, there was a crevice dividing the wall. It wasn't too small of a crevice; it could easily hide a person. Now, I had two choices. I could either investigate further on this crevice, or I could just run as fast as I could out of this alleyway. I didn't have much time to contemplate, for at that moment a black shape jumped out at me, causing me to startle and scream slightly. The thing, or man, that was now in front of me covered his body and face with a black cloak, strangely reminding me of Erik. I cleared my head of thoughts of _him_, for I knew that he was back at the house with my mother. Pulling together all the courage I had, I spoke to the person._

"_W-who are you?" I asked, my voice shaking._

"_I am the Phantom of the Opera!" he bellowed as he bore the rest of his body._

_The sight before me both confused and disgusted me. The man's face was half covered with a white porcelain mask and he wore a black fedora atop his head. His whole body was dressed in black, only having white cuff lets. His overall appearance caused my mind to swirl. This couldn't be Erik! I knew that he would never act this way with me. That only meant one thing; that this person was an imposture of Erik. Though why anyone would want to parade about like the Phantom of the Opera was beyond my comprehension._

"_What do want?" I wondered, surprised that I could even speak at this moment._

"_I am the Phantom!" The man roared as he swooshed his cloak. "The world renowned murderer of scoundrels. I creep in the shadows and kidnap all who come in my way. All who see me fear me. There is none who do not cringe at my name, or scream when they are unfortunate enough to meet me. And you! You too shall know the wrath of me! Aargh!"_

"_You're not the Phantom," I said skeptically. The whole time he was going on with his speech, I was just thinking how ridiculous this was. If Erik was here right now, I was sure that he would show this filth who really was the Phantom of the Opera. How I would love to see that sight…_

"_You shall pay for your lack of faith!" the "Phantom" cried out as he lunged towards me. He grabbed my arm, but I twisted my way out of it. Then I began to run down the alleyway, but didn't get too far before the man leaped out in front of me and blocked my way. I tried to get around him, but he grabbed both my arms and pulled me to him._

"_Not so smart now, are you Madamemoiselle?" he jeered in my ear. His breath smelled of alcohol and made me cringe. "Now you shall know the wrath of the Phantom of the Opera!"_

"_You're not the Phantom of the Opera!" I said fiercely as I jammed my foot down on his toes. He wheeled back slightly, giving me a chance to run for it once again. This time, I got past him and began to run back to the main street, but he grabbed my leg from behind, causing me to fall over. Even as I fell, he kept a strong hold on my leg and kept me in the same spot as he came over to me. Once he was beside me, he shifted his hold to my hair and pulled me up with him. _

"_I've had enough of your little games, miss. I'll teach you the meaning of pain, you insolent bitch. I doubt you'll make it out of here alive. Within moments you'll be wishing you were dead; I'll make your blood run until there's none left. Then when I'm done with you, you'll just be a shriveled corpse."_

_He then laughed in my face as he pulled out a knife. I saw it glint in the moonlight, and it was at that moment that I knew he was not lying about what he was going to do to me. It was then that I wished that I had never run away from home. If I hadn't let my hard-headedness get in the way, I would be back in bed, safe from this lunatic. But I couldn't take it away now, for he brought the knife down hard on my arm, making a deep cut._

_I screamed out in pain, and I looked down at my arm, seeing the blood begin to spurt out. I was so occupied with it that I didn't notice him bring up the knife for another slash at me. This time it hit my stomach. I doubled over in pain, clutching my stomach. I lifted up my hands and noticed that abnormal amount of blood. I nearly fainted from the sight._

So much blood_… I thought sadly._

_The cut was so deep that I was surprised that my intestines weren't falling out as well. I looked up sadly as the man brought down the knife again, slashing my back. The last blow made me fall over, landing on my stomach, which caused pain to curse more throughout my body. As I lied on the ground, my blood pooling around me, I thought about all that I had gone through, and how much I put my family through. I was sincerely sorry at that moment when I felt my body go numb at the numerous slashes in my body. The man continued to beat on me, but I wasn't paying attention any more. I could feel my world going black, and I knew that I was going to die. I felt my eyes begin to flutter, and I gave in to the overwhelming darkness. From then on, I felt no more._

**It is a fanfiction sin to read and not review!**


	9. Years Past

**A/N: Whew! I'm back! I know, I know, semi-long wait... but I thank each and every one of you for your amazing reviews! I love them! I hope you enjoy this chapter! Oh, and I little heads up, this chapter sort've skips about 4 years from the last chapter. But this chapter, I'm sure, will leave some unanswered questions, but that's how it's supposed to be. Enjoy and please review!**

**Chapter 9**

"_What are you afraid of?" he asked as he rocked his daughter on his lap in the rocking chair._

_She giggled. "I'm not afraid of anything father!"_

"_Oh really?" he asked as he, too, began to laugh. "Not of monsters, or ghosts, or witches?"_

"_Well none of those things exist!" she declared matter-of-factly._

_Her father sat still for a moment, seeming to think about something. Then at last he spoke. "Your mother and I once knew a ghost."_

"_You're silly father," the child replied sweetly._

"_Oh no, I am being completely serious. When your mother and I were younger, we actually had a run in with a ghost. He was so ugly, and putrid. He almost killed us. He was cold as ice and smelled like a rotting corpse…"_

_The child's voice shook slightly as she spoke. "Mother says it's not good to lie..."_

"_And that's why I'm not," he whispered in her ear._

_She jumped off his lap abruptly and yelled, "Stop lying! Mother says there's no such thing as ghosts!"_

_Then she ran inside her front door quickly, desperate to get away_

_Desperate_

_Desperate_

_To get _

_To get_

_Away _

_Away_

_Away…_

Lying in the bed, her hand twitched slightly, but sadly no one was there to see it, or take any heed to it at all. Emma still did not wake, but stayed in her deep slumber.

In the other room of the marvelous house, however, there was a party going on. There was laughter and talk; everyone was having a fantastic time. At least everyone except one man. The man lurked in the shadows, trying to stay away from any human touch. But there was one person who he did not mind to have near him; her name was Christine. For a couple of years now, she had been his wife, and helped to sooth his troubles. Her touch seemed to warm his cold flesh and comfort his tortured soul; and how tortured he was. Of course he loved his wife dearly, but there was still something missing. He knew that his wife missed it too, probably more than he did. After all, it was her daughter who had been in a coma for four years.

But her daughter, Emma, now seemed to also be his now too… too bad Emma didn't know anything about it. No, about one year after Emma had slipped into her coma, Erik had finally asked Christine to marry him. To his surprise, she accepted right away. There was no pause, no 'umm…' no 'let me think about it.' Her answered was a 'yes' without hesitation, and that yes had made him the happiest man alive.

Their first year as a married couple was a bit bumpy. They could not decide where to live, who to tell about their marriage, or, most important of all, what to do with their daughter. Erik wanted to keep her with them; for her to not go see other doctors, but Christine felt that it was important for her to go. She said that maybe other doctors would be able to help her, know how to get her out of this coma, but Erik refused. So at last Christine gave in and Emma stayed with them in their newly bought house on the outskirts of Paris.

Then another two years passed, which brought them to where they were now, at the re-opening party for the Opera Populaire. Finally after being closed for so long, after the years of reconstruction, the Opera was ready to reopen its' doors to the public. Christine would be their diva, but only after some debate. The managers of the Opera, the returning M. Firmin and M. Andre, were uncertain whether or not Christine would bring the same trouble that she had in the past. But, alas, she persuaded them that the Phantom of the Opera would bother them no more.

And now everyone was at the biggest party of the year. This included the Giry's, who were also resuming their rightful places at the Opera House. Meg Giry, especially, asked Christine many times if she knew what had happened to the Opera Ghost, but Christine just swore that she hadn't the faintest clue. Mme. Giry, on the other hand, knew exactly what was going on with Erik and Christine, for she had been in contact with Erik for quite some time. (She was the one who bought Christine's gorgeous diamond wedding ring.)

But tonight there were no worries, not a care in the world. Christine was a wonderful host and made sure that everyone had a great time. Erik, though, detested the party and wished to take leave of it at once, which he was entitled to do since no one even knew he was here in the first place, but he wanted to keep an eye on his lovely wife. He didn't know what he would do if something ever happened to her; it pained him to even think about it. So he continued to lurk in the shadows, an unseen predator to any of those despicable creatures who dared to enter his household.

To deep in his thoughts, Erik failed to realize a new presence enter the room from behind him.

"Erik!" the person whispered fiercely into the dark.

Quick as a cat, Erik swiveled around to defend himself, but relaxed when he saw that it was just Mme. Giry.

"Ah, Antoinette. What a pleasant surprise," he responded.

She smiled wryly. "I hope I didn't startle you too badly, Erik, but I have something that I must ask."

Erik's face hardened. He hated questions. Why couldn't people just mind their own damn business? "Well, if you must ask it, then you may. But be quick about it. I have much to do tonight."

"Oh don't give me that poppycock Erik," Mme. Giry retorted. "I know very well that you have nothing planned for tonight. But, I shall ask my question quickly anyways." She paused and took a breath before continuing. "I remember a couple of years ago, Erik, that you mentioned Christine's daughter. And, well, I haven't seen her, and I was just wondering what ever happened to her."

Erik's eyes flashed in the dark and he turned his back on his old friend. Then he spoke in a low harsh voice, "I suggest, Antoinette, that you keep such questions to yourself. You will find that they are not welcome here."

"Very well," Mme. Giry said shortly as she turned and left, leaving a both sad and angry phantom alone.

Downstairs, as Christine was talking to Meg, she saw the swoosh of a cloak in the shadows. She looked up and saw the flash of Erik's yellow eyes, telling her that he was angry. Smiling politely, she asked Meg to please excuse her for a moment. Hastily Christine moved up the stairs and looked around for Erik, until at last she found him sitting in a room in the deepest corner of the house.

Erik was sitting hunched over on a chair, his head in his hands, silently sobbing. Christine hurried over to him, her heart leaping out of her chest, and kneeled down in front of him.

"Oh Erik, what's wrong?" she asked.

Erik brought his head up and looked into her eyes, but quickly looked away, only choking out the word "Emma." Christine understood immediately. She took him into her arms and cradled him gently, resting his head on her shoulder. There he silently wept, clutching her closely to him. Seeing him like this tore Christine apart. She knew how much Emma had meant to him, and although he tried to deny, she saw him go into Emma's room every night. But over the years, as Emma slipped farther and farther away, it became too painful for Erik to see her. Eventually, the nightly visits were reduced to only once a week.

But unknown to them both, as they both sat there, holding each other's tears, a joyous event was occurring that would change their lives forever.

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	10. Reawakening

**A/N: Thank you to all my reviewers... even though SOME people who are REGULAR reviewers did NOT review... but I am still updating! Hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

**Chapter 10**

_The room was silent. All was quiet for the patient to get her rest. But at that moment, something unusual happened, something that no one thought would ever happen…. She woke up._

Slowly my eyes fluttered open. I let out a small groan, but not one of pain, just of tiredness. My eyes were only open a tiny slit, just enough for me to see through. Looking about me, I realized that I had no idea where I was. Nothing looked familiar to me. I took a moment to try and recall what had happened, but I couldn't remember a thing. Still I kept trying to remember anything. My name, where I was, who my family was, my past, but nothing came up.

It was then that I realized that everything about my life, I had forgotten. My heart began to pound and my breath began coming in short gasps. Lying there in the strange bed, I realized that I was having a panic attack. I just didn't know what to do; I was completely lost! But who was **I**? That was the main question that concerned me. As I began to settle down a little, the initial shock began to wear off, but still I was confused. And where was everyone? Surely I was not all alone here. There had to be someone looking out for me. But I glanced around the room and saw no traces of anyone. Did I even have a family that cared for me? Then I began to feel the tears threatening to pour down my face, but what did it mater? No one was around to see me or hear me. Letting myself cry did help me a little bit; at least I knew now that I wasn't dead, even though it seemed like it. Not having anyone around, not knowing who you are…

Suddenly I heard loud voices and people laughing. _So I wasn't alone… _Straining my ears, I tried to listen to the voices, to perhaps recognize someone, but I recognized nothing. Now I knew that there was _someone_ here, wherever I was. For a moment I thought about going into the other room and seeing whom these voices belonged to, but I decided against it. What if no one knew me and kicked me out onto the streets? Then I'd me lost and cold. So I decided to stay where I was and wait for someone to come to me. Just having anyone near me, talking to me, would help me to feel better.

But as I sat there, the hours rolling by, I realized that no one would come. I had no clue how long I had been sitting there, but it had been long enough. I then realized that I had two options: 1) I could stay in here for a little while longer and wait for someone or 2) I could go out there and find someone who knew me, someone who could help me. Neither of them sounded too pleasing, but I was desperate and needed to do something. So, choosing the latter of the two, I got up out of the bed and walked slowly to the door. When I got to the door, I paused for a moment, really pondering over whether or not I should really go out there. I mean, I didn't want to scare anyone by just popping up out of nowhere. And truthfully, I didn't want anyone to scare me either. It was bad enough not knowing who I was, but I was also afraid that no one out there would know me either. Then my case of lost identity would shoot up and I would feel even worse, if that was possible. But I knew that I had to do something, for I would not let myself rot away up here.

Just as I was about to open up the door, it opened up by itself. On the other side of the door, there stood a tall man clad in all black with only a white mask covering one side of his face. Seeing him standing there brought fear racing throughout my whole body. At first I did not know why, but then many pictures shot thought my mind of this man and I. They plagued my brain like an unwanted swarm of locusts. Many flashes of blood and fights flashed one after the other. I knew that these were from my past (whoever I was), and just knowing this about it greatly frightened me. If this had happened, who knew what other horrible things could have happened to me? Slowly I backed away from the man, who had a very shocked look on his face, and sat down in the back corner of the room, my knees hugged to my chest. All I wanted was for this creature to go away and leave me be. He could not help me; all he brought was an intense fear.

But as I sat there huddled in the corner, I could feel the man walking towards me, getting closer and closer with every step. I brought my body closer and closer to me, trying to keep myself from getting exposed to him. Once he was about two feet away from me he stopped and knelt down in front of me.

"Emma?" he asked in a hushed voice.

For a moment this comment startled me. Was that my name? Emma? Then I remembered the flashed of pictures I had had moments before and the fear returned. "Go away," I said quietly.

"But it's me," the man continued. "Erik. Do you not remember me?"

Erik? The name did not ring a bell in my head, only pain. "All I know is that you attacked me."

This seemed to startle Erik for a moment, for he took a long pause and seemed to get confused. "A-attacked?" he stuttered out at last.

I only nodded my head.

"But, but Emma. I would never do such a thing. Never. I did not attack you. Do you understand me?"

"But I saw you," I whispered back.

"What you saw was not me. You must understand that," he replied urgently.

I turned myself away from him even more and did not respond. I heard him get up from his knelt position and walk towards the door. Once I was sure that he was gone, I got up onto my feet and went and sat on my bed. This contact with Erik caused me to rethink what I had seen in my mind. What if these two masked men were two different people? Was it possible? If so, why would they dress themselves in that way? All these questions were too much for me to handle; I had gone through enough for today. Just as I was about to lie down to go to sleep, I saw my door open up again. This time a woman entered. She had long, brown curly hair that cascaded down her shoulders. She looked beautiful, but also seemed to hold a cloud of sadness around her. Slowly she approached my bed, gazing at me as if in disbelief. I had no clue who she was, yet she looked as if she knew everything about me. As she got closer to me, I noticed that she had tears in her eyes. I wondered what was going on here, why everyone was so surprised and happy to see me. If only I could remember…

"Emma?" she asked in a soft voice as she stood next to my bed.

I did not answer. How could I? I did not know if I was indeed this "Emma" person.

Again she repeated her question, and again I did not answer.

"Emma, please, answer me," she begged.

"I can't," I said quietly.

Her brow furrowed as she still looked at me. "What do you mean?"

"I mean exactly as I say," I replied, exasperated. "I cannot answer you, for I do not know the answer."

"But... how can that be? You're my daughter! How can you not remember?" she cried.

"Daughter?" I asked. Could this woman possibly be my mother? I did not remember her at all. But, of course, I did not remember anything.

"Yes!" she said as she grabbed my arm. "You are Emma De Chagny! Daughter of Christine and Raoul De Chagny!"

"But those names don't sound familiar. Nothing does…" I whispered.

The woman stood up quickly and ran from the room, but quickly returned with another man, one whom I did not recognize either.

"Nadir, she does not remember anything!" the woman told the man.

"Hmm... interesting indeed. I do suppose she has amnesia. After all, she has been in a coma for the past four years," the man responded.

"A coma? Four years?" I questioned.

"Oh, yes. You had an accident…."

"The masked man…" I said, interrupting him.

"What's that? Do you mean Erik?"

"I don't know his name. But some masked man attacked me. That must be the reason I got in this coma…"

"Emma, Erik did not do this to you, you must understand!" my supposed mother told me. "There must be some other masked man parading about, pretending to be Erik." She paused. "Oh! Who would do such a thing?"

"But Erik looked just like the other man," I told them.

"I know that these two men are not one in the same. I have a very close relationship with Erik and I know him well enough to know that he would never harm you in any way. He cares for you so much," the woman said.

"He frightens me."

"No! He is so kind and gentle. You must not be afraid of him. So many people are; but you mean so much to him. He would be crushed if he knew you were frightened of him as well!"

"But I do not remember him. He frightens me."

"Perhaps in time you will remember all. But until then, you just need some rest. Get some sleep, and we'll talk more in the morning," my mother responded with finality in her voice.

As I tucked myself in, I saw her and the other man leave the room and close the door behind them. I partially believed what she had said. But I had to also believe that my memories would come back in time. Until then, I would get some rest, just like my mother had suggested.

**It is a fanfiction sin to read and not review!**


	11. Insanity

**A/N: Wow! Look! An update! Whoo-hoo! Let's throw a party! Lol. I am deeply sorry for the long wait! but now I have two weeks off of school, and should update more often. I'll try to update either once or twice (if you're lucky) within the next week. Sorry it is so short a chapter! but please enjoy and please review! Thxs!**

**Chapter 11**

My eyes slowly opened.

Looking about me, I saw my mother just entering the room, carrying a tray full of food. My stomach grumbled hungrily as I looked at it; I had not realized just how hungry I was until I saw all those breakfast items. My mother brought over the tray and I grabbed quickly at the toast that had been prepared for me. I noticed that Christine was looking at me with an amused look, but I paid to mind to it. It did not take me too long to eat all the food that had been made, only a few minutes. Once I was done, I laid back down in my bed, fully content.

"I suppose you enjoyed your meal?" my mother asked with a smile on her face.

I looked up at her. "Yes I did, thank you."

"Would you like anything else?"

I shook me head. "No."

Christine sighed. It seemed that she had something else to say, but did not know how. Deciding to help push her along I questioned, "What's the matter?"

Her eyes darted around the room as she fidgeted with her hands. "Umm…. Erik would like to speak with you… if you would let him."

Immediately I looked down and turned my gaze away from her. I did not want to speak with _him_. I had already said all that I wanted or needed to say; I did not want another pointless conversation.

"I do not wish to see that man," I stated simply.

"But Emma!" my mother cried, exasperated. "He loves you just as if he was your own father! Please give him a chance!"

My eyes narrowed. "I shall do nothing of the sort. I have missed 5 years of my life, and I am a young woman now. I shall not spend my time with some monster who only wishes to do me harm!"

"But he does not want to do you any harm!" Christine argued. "He only wants you to accept him! He did not do those crimes that night!"

"Then prove it."

Christine breathed in deeply as she seethed at me. For a moment I wondered if I had been too harsh with her, for she had done nothing wrong. But still, I would not let her push me into something that I did not want to do.

"Fine," she said just before she turned and left the room in a hurry.

I cocked my head slightly, wondering what she was going to do. Could she really prove that Erik had not done this to me? I hoped not, for then I would look like the fool.

* * *

Christine was rushing through the halls of her house, her mind racing with questions that had no answers. She wondered why Emma was being so stubborn with her. She had never been like this before the accident. But Christine did suppose that going through something like that would be traumatizing. But still! To treat your mother with such disrespect was unbelievable! She truly hoped that Erik would be up to the challenge of her request. She needed him to do this for everybody. Of course, it would help him most of all, for if he could find out who had harmed Emma, then he might be able to regain Emma's love and trust.

At last finding Erik in his office, Christine stormed in without even knocking.

"Erik," she declared. "I have an idea."

Erik turned his head slowly and looked at his beautiful wife. His hair was array and his mask was flung in the corner of the room. His shirt was unbuttoned and his eyes were red, seemingly from not getting a wink of sleep for the past few days. Frankly, he looked like a complete mess. Seeing Erik in this state tore Christine apart, causing her to rush over to his side and caress his deformed cheek.

"I… I do not know what to do," Erik sobbed.

"Shh love, it will be all right. I think I may know how you can get her to trust you again," Christine coaxed as she kissed his right cheek.

Erik hung his head, placing it in his hands. "It is all ruined. She will never come around. I have lost her love forever. She loves another."

Christine cocked her head at his last statement. _Loved another? What the… _"Erik, what are you talking about?"

He rose from his seat and began pacing the room. "She has run off with him. Left me all alone in my solitude. Left me an even more broken man than before."

"Erik-" she began, but he seemed not to hear and kept going.

"My music shall never be played again. It should all be burned. Yes, I think I shall burn it."

He then walked over to the fireplace and was about to throw himself him, when Christine ran over to him and tackled him to the ground. Erik resisted against her for only a moment, before Christine managed to grab the pills from his pocket. Hastily she opened the canister and poured out two pills, forcing them into Erik's mouth. Then she got the water and once again had to force him to drink it.

Once that was over with, Christine got off of Erik and walked over to the other side of the room. Ever since that day that she had taken Erik to the hospital those four years ago, she was afraid that this would happen some day. In those five years that Emma had been in a coma, Erik had begun to... change. He would often mumble about certain things, and pretend that people who were in the room really weren't. Eventually, it became so bad that he would not snap out of it. Christine thought that he had become insane... and that was when she took him to the doctor, where they gave him the pills.

The doctor said that he would have to take the pills twice a day, and he would be fine. Once she had heard this, she blocked out the rest of what the doctor was saying. She did not want to know what he had or how bad it was. As long as he would be fine, she did not care. But ever since that day, she had been scared that he would forget the pills and once again become that crazed man… and that day had finally come. Christine wept to herself as she thought of what Erik would have done she had not gotten here when she did.

Just then, she heard the ruffling of clothes as Erik at last got to his feet. She turned around to look at him, but he had already left the room. She wondered why he had done so, but she guessed that he was embarrassed. Still, it seemed that her life would never get any better.

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	12. Beautiful Day

**A/N: Hey there! Thanks so much to all my reviewers! Your thoughts mean a lot to me! And I apologize for the long wait... I had writer's block.. I'm sorry! But I hope you all enjoy this chappie, and please review! Thxs!**

**Chapter 12**

I sat by the window, the wind blowing gently through my hair. Sitting there, all I could think about was Erik and what my mother had suggested. I wished to think of something else besides Erik, but my mind would not let me. It was as though he was an obsession with me, and one that kept me rethinking my beliefs about who had harmed me. I was not so certain now that Erik was the one who had really attacked me, and I now thought that it actually _had_ been someone else. Someone who Erik just happened to look like but had no relation to him whatsoever.

I shook my head. Whatever had happened was in the past now, and perhaps I just needed to move on. I had missed so much of my life already that I didn't know if it was really worth it to waste time thinking about something that I could not change.

Still sitting by the window, my mind began to slowly creep away from one part of my past and to another. For the first time, I started to wonder about my real father, who he was, and why he wasn't here now. Didn't he care for me? Even Erik was here, trying to comfort me, but my father was nowhere to be found. My mother had not mentioned him at all, except for his name. But she told me nothing about his whereabouts or why he wouldn't be here with me.

Perhaps he truly didn't love me or want to be a part of my life. Honestly, I had no idea. My father was such a mysterious character to me that he intrigued me almost more than Erik did, which surprised me.

For a moment, I thought about leaving this house and going to find my biological father, but then I thought about my condition and decided against it. Going out at this time would be a very unwise decision on my part.

Sighing, I walked away from the window and went over to the bathroom adjacent from my room. Looking in the mirror, I hardly recognized myself. I looked full-grown, about 5'8, and had long brown wavy hair, my skin a fair tone with a touch of pink. It was so strange for me to look at myself now when I barely remembered what I had looked like before.

Hanging my head, I glanced back over at the window, the gently breeze blowing the curtains. It looked so beautiful outside, so peaceful, that I just couldn't resist from going to get some fresh air.

I walked silently out of my bedroom, not wanting to draw any attention to myself, and slowly crept down the stairs. As I walked through the house, it seemed as though no one was even home, but I paid no mind to it, for the less people here, the less I had to deal with.

Once I got outside to the porch, the green grass plentiful and the flowers blooming, the sight really just took my breath away. I had nearly forgotten how amazing nature was in the springtime where everything was so beautiful.

Stepping off of the porch I began to take a walk around the massive house, which was equally as amazing as the nature, it's large columns cascading upwards and the white paint trimmed with gold. Strolling around the perimeters on the finely graved pathway took my mind off of my saddened thoughts, and brought peace to me. Just getting this little piece of relaxation soothed my soul, which surprised me a little. I had not expected this to ease my pain at all.

At last I got to the back of the house and went over to a bench located in the middle of the garden underneath a weeping willow tree. Sitting down, I leaned back into the wooden bench and watched the blades of green grass blow gently in the breeze. With a sigh, I closed my eyes and just rested there a while, listening the chirp of birds and the whistle of the wind.

Somehow, as I sat there, I dozed off into an extremely peaceful sleep, which went undisturbed, until I felt someone tap me on the shoulder. I was startled at first, and jumped slightly, which in turn caused the person who tapped me to jump as well. I turned my head quickly and looked at the person, who I did not recognize at all. She was a white woman, with blonde hair tied back neatly in a ponytail, a blue bonnet shadowing her face form the beating sun. Her eyes were wide for a moment with alarm, before she settled down enough to speak.

"Excuse me, Mademoiselle," she said politely, "But would you happen to know where Christine is?"

I shook my head. "I apologize, but I have not seen my mother recently today. I came directly out here this morning, and I must have fallen asleep."

The woman nodded her head in understanding. "I take it you must be Emma, then?"

I gave a quick nod.

Her eyes lit up brightly as I did this and she stuck out her hand immediately. "Oh, it is such a pleasure to meet you at last! Christine has told me so much about you, and it is a shame that we have not met sooner."

Taking her hand I replied, "Please excuse me, but what is your name?"

"Do forgive me, it seems I have forgotten my manners!" she exclaimed. "I am Meg Giry, a long time friend of your mother. I have known her since childhood. You see, we were chorus girls at the Opera House together, at least until… you know."

I shook my head sadly. "No, I don't know, actually. I can't remember much…" I said softly.

Meg clasped a hand to her mouth. "Oh my! I completely forgot about your... accident. Do forgive my poor manners, I do not know where they have gone today."

I laughed softly. "It is quite alright, really."

"May I sit down?" her sweet voice asked as she gestured to the seat beside me.

"Of course you may."

Swiftly she sat down next to me, sighing as she did so.

"It was such a long walk over here," she began, "and the sun has been beating down hard all day today."

I nodded my head in agreement. "It certainly has been a hot day," I replied softly.

For the next few moments, neither of us said a word, but just sat there, enjoying each others company. Truthfully, I was very relieved to have another person here with me, besides my mother and Erik. They had been an imposing force on me the past day or two, and it was nice to have someone else's accompaniment. Meg was a nice girl, and she seemed to be very sweet and sincere; I figured that our friendship would last a long time.

After a little while, Meg rose to her feet.

She turned to me and said, "Well, it has been a pleasure meeting you, Emma."

"And you as well," I replied with a smile. "Do be sure to come back and visit. And I am sorry that my mother was not here."

"Oh, that is quite alright," she responded sweetly. "I'll be sure to come back another time, and we should especially be seeing each other more often now that the Opera House is opening back up."

With that, she said a quick goodbye, and left me sitting on the bench, a light smile brightening my face. Perhaps this life wouldn't be too bad after all. There were some nice people here for me to chat with.

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	13. Worst Nightmare

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait.. been pretty busy. But I thank all of you who have reviewed! I appreciate them all so much. Sorry this chapter is a little short, but I hope you enjoy it anyways! Please reviews! Thxs!**

**Chapter 13**

Erik sat in the carriage, his mind racing with thoughts of his... family. He supposed that he really did have an actual family now, but still, it did not feel that way at all. Emma resented him, and his wife thought him insane. Was this how a family was supposed to act? Erik surely didn't know. Since he had never had a family as a child, adolescent, or adult, he did not know the meaning of the word. Actually, he felt that he didn't even deserve a family or love or any of the great things that Christine had presented to him. He was a monster, having the voice of an angel and yet the face of a demon. He didn't deserve anyone's love, and he supposed that it was his mother who had first taught him that idea.

His mother had always treated him cruelly, laughing at him and abusing him, up to the point where he ran away. She always mocked him and told him that she wished him dead. He asked for a hug, one hug, and she pushed him away, saying that no woman would ever want to touch his repulsive being.

The word "mother" to him meant hate, cruelty, and just pure loathing. Were mother's supposed to act this way? Were they supposed to tell their children that they were worthless? Erik thought not. He had seen the way Christine treated Emma, and it infused a sort of jealousy in him that he had never been loved in that way, or taken care of. Why did his face create such fear, such resentment? Did looks really mean that much to the world?

Even after he ran away, Erik had felt lost. He went to the traveling fair, where he was just as abused there as he was at home, perhaps even more so. Still, the pain of having your own mother hate you was worse than any physical pain. Eventually, he became immune to the pain, and a black hole began to form in his heart. The humans were a mean, selfish race and Erik hated them all for what they did to him; but most of all he hated himself.

When Erik had escaped the fair with the help of Nadir, he began his travels around the world, where he went all over to the east and made good amounts of money. His talents were accepted, and received praise. But still, no one loved him. Even some of the people who gave him jobs tried to have him killed. This, Erik would not put up with. He began killing those who harmed him, or rather _tried_ to harm him. It was then that his best friend became his Punjab Lasso. It helped him kill a many of people, and his skills with this weapon increased and increased until it was just second nature. Of course, he had a plethora of skills, including ventriloquism, architecture, magic, and of course, music.

His voice had progressed over the years, but Erik just assumed that he had always been excellent. The voice that he had was that of an angel, and every time he sang, it helped to soothe him. Eventually, he began to write music, aria's of different sort's, but his favorite genre was of one not yet established; that was why he loved it. The sound was something that no one had ever heard before, that no one had ever imagined. Erik presumed that this sound was of his own making, and came from all the experiences that had happened to him; things that no human being should ever have to endure.

As Erik sat in the carriage, thinking over his life, a deep sadness came over him, filling him with depression. Along with this feeling came anger, a wrath towards those who had harmed him. These people had no right to speak to him like they did, to act the way they did. It was uncivilized and most unwanted. But, of course, what did they care? Humans only cared about themselves and how to make their lives better, not giving a second thought to those they hurt along the way; a single thought to him.

At last the carriage pulled up to his destination: the town outside of Nadir's home. Seeing this town again did not sit well with Erik, and he wanted to never see the place again. This was where a monster had harmed Emma and made her forget all about him and their past together. Now she did not know him and feared him; probably hated him.

Whoever this monster was, he would not make it through this night alive.

Erik jumped out of his carriage and slowly walked through the twisted streets and alleyways of L'eau. He blended into the shadows perfectly, not a person could see him, even if they wanted to, they wouldn't be able to find him. This was where he was meant to be, where he felt a home. In the shadows, nothing could harm him, and he was immune to all pain.

When he reached the alley where the "accident" had happened, flashes came back to Erik of what had played out before him that day; Emma's bleeding body, her slow pulse, Christine's weeping… Everything he remembered vividly. Erik reached into his pocket and grasped his Punjab tightly, his fist clenching around it. Tonight, his lasso would strike again with its deadly efficiency.

His amber eyes peered around, the dark not hindering his sight at all. The yellow orbs of light searched expectantly for the murderer, looking in every nook and cranny of the hidden street.

Then he saw it. Like a flash of lightning a rope had struck out at Erik's neck, attempting to throttle the breath out of him. But Erik was ready, he held his hand at the level of his eye, and stopped the rope from making any contact with his jugular. The rope was held firmly in Erik's hand as he pulled on it unexpectedly and sent the attacker sprawling to the ground.

In an instant Erik had his lasso out and hovered over the man lying on his stomach. Erik whipped the lasso around the man's neck and pulled it back tightly, hearing the man choking for air.

"Who are you?" Erik asked harshly through clenched teeth.

"Your... your worst nightmare," the man responded as he kicked his back foot up and kicked Erik squarely in the back.

Erik flinched slightly but did not let go of his grip.

"_I_ am my worst nightmare," Erik responded before he gave one final tug of his rope and heard the sickening crunch of the man's throat.

**It is a fanfiction sin to read and not review!**


	14. Return

**A/N: Thank you so much to my sniff two reviewers! waaaa! sniff.. okay, don't worry about me I'll be sniff fine... if someone would review! To the two of you who did.. well, you get a treat! Hugs and kisses from Erik! yay! well, please enjoy the chapter, and Review? maybe? please? big puppy dog eyes. Erik wants you to!**

**Chapter 14**

Christine sat in the little drawing room, doing some light reading while she waited for Erik to return, if he ever would. He had not come home in three days, and to be honest, she was getting quite worried. She assumed that he was just embarrassed about what was going on right now, even thought he needn't be. There was nothing wrong with him, but Erik still believed that he was a monster, no matter what anybody else said.

She sighed as she placed down the book and left the room, needing to get some fresh air. As she was on her way out, a knock came from the door, startling her just before she opened it. On the other side was Madame Giry, holding a notebook of papers. Christine took a deep breath to relieve herself.

"Good afternoon, Mme. Giry," she said politely. "What brings you here?"

"I needed to speak with you about the chorus girl choices and the ballerinas," Mme. Giry answered as she gestured to the papers in her hands. "I have all the applications here."

"Very well then. Please, come inside," replied Christine as she moved aside for the woman to enter.

Mme. Giry entered the house gracefully and went into the living room, taking a seat on the lush red couch beside the coffee table. Christine entered only moments after, and took the seat next to her.

As Mme. Giry laid out the papers, Christine looked at each of the papers, glancing over the information that each of the girls had presented. Each one appeared to have much practice in the performing arts and it seemed that they would all fit in very nicely. It was then that Christine knew that she would have a very difficult choice to make and was glad that Mother Giry was here to help; she only wished that Erik could have been here as well.

She slowly read each of the names on the top of each of the papers, and stopped when she saw a name she recognized.

"Sorelli?" Christine asked, hoping that the girl really was applying again.

Mme. Giry nodded her head as she reached for the sheet. "Yes, Mlle. Sorelli is wishing to rejoin us at the Opera House as well. She has missed her job, apparently, and gave me her application just yesterday."

"We must let her back in, of course. She was the best ballerina we had," insister Christine.

"Alright then, Christine. We will put her in the acceptance pile," replied Mme. Giry as she moved the paper. "But remember that we must look at all the applications and not just the ones that we already know. Everybody needs a fair chance to get in."

"Oh of course, Mme. Giry," said Christine. "I just believe that Sorelli is the best Ballet dancer in Paris."

"Well, let's continue on our search then; we have a lot of papers to cover."

The application process did take awhile, just as Christine had suspected. But after two long hours, it was finally completed and they had found their new cast. There were 35 new performers, all singers/dancers. Some of them, however, were just alternate's and would only be used if the main performer was not feeling well. Both Mme. Giry and Christine were very pleased with their choices and knew that they would have a fantastic first season.

After all this was completed, Mme. Giry said her goodbyes to Christine and left the house to return to her own home.

Christine let out a heavy sigh once she was again alone in her room. Reviewing all those papers had made her even more excited for the Opera House to reopen and regain it's popularity. She had not realized just how much she had missed performing until recently, when she and Erik had discussed it. She missed the smells, the excitement, the people, but most of all, the stage. She truly missed the exhilaration of being up on stage in front of thousands of people singing for all of them to hear. It was nerve wracking, but also filled her with joy nonetheless.

She always –

Suddenly, a rustling of curtains behind her tore her from her thoughts, causing her to turn around to face her intruder. Christine gasped when she saw that it was Erik who had climbed in through the window. Why he had not used the front door like a normal person Christine couldn't guess.

"Oh Erik," she began, "How I've –" She was cut off by his lips meeting in hers in a passionate kiss. She moaned out in pleasure, as he demanded entrance into her mouth, his tongue finding every inch of her mouth.

When he at last pulled away, Christine still stood there, her lips parted slightly and her eyes still closed.

Christine finally opened up her eyes to look at Erik, but only found that he was once again gone. Her eyes narrowed into tiny slits of anger.

"Damn you Erik!" she yelled into the open room. "Why do you keep leaving!"

Feeling defeated and alone, she plopped down onto the couch wishing that Erik was still here. Still one question pondered her. Why did Erik keep leaving her? He was never around and every second of the day she missed him. Didn't he realize what he was doing to his _wife_? Didn't he realize just how badly she needed him?

But Christine already knew the answer to that. _No_. No he didn't know just how much she needed him, because he had never been needed like this before in his life. There was never a single soul who wished to be around him constantly, that needed to feel touch and hear his voice. Without him she was nothing, and he needed to realize that and come home.

Erik needed to stop being so prideful and realized that Christine would love him no matter what happened. No matter how bad off they were, or how insane any of them got, she would always love him and care for him. Nothing could ever change that. He made her vulnerable and weak, for with every touch he gave her, she felt like she could lose herself and forget everything.

"Erik... do you have any idea what you do to me?" Christine whispered into the emptiness.

"Enlighten me," came an unexpected response.

Christine quickly turned around to face Erik, who had entered without being noticed; something that he was rather good at. She stared in disbelief at the masked man who stood before her now, wondering why he as coming and leaving consistently.

"Why?" was all Christine could say, mostly just as a voice of her thoughts. This response confused Erik and he cocked his head to the side.

"Why what?" he asked.

Christine sighed. "Why do you keep coming and going like this? Why can you not just stay here? You have been gone for three days, and then you show up once, kiss me then leave, and now here you are again. You had me worried sick, Erik! You can't just go gallivanting off for however long you like and not tell anyone about it! God, Erik, there are people here who actually care about you!"

Erik looked down at his feet, appearing to be ashamed of himself. "I did it."

"Did what, Erik?" Christine cried exasperatedly.

"Destroyed the man who injured Emma…" Erik said quietly. "That's where I was. I got revenge on that monster. He can harm no one anymore."

Slowly Christine walked over to Erik and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Why didn't you just tell me that? You know that I would've understood."

Erik sighed as he pulled Christine into a loving embrace. "I know I should've told you... it's just that I'm not used to having someone to check in with. It won't happen again."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

They stayed in each other's arms for just a little while longer before they parted.

"I guess I should go check on Emma," Christine stated as she went to the door.

Erik nodded in agreement. "How is she doing?"

"Oh, the usual I guess. She still hasn't remembered anything... Plus she is beginning to have nightmares," replied Christine as she began to walk to Emma's room with Erik at her side.

"What kind of nightmares?" asked Erik who was beginning to get even more concerned about Emma. He hated the fact that he could do nothing to help her, and even if he could, she would probably not accept it from him anyways.

"I'm not sure. She won't tell me much about them; you know how she is."

"Not really," responded Erik grudgingly. He didn't like the fact that he barely knew Emma anymore since she was shutting him out.

Christine looked pitifully over at Erik, knowing how much this must be hurting him. "Don't worry, love, she'll come around."

"I hope so," was all Erik could say.

At last they got to Emma's room where the door was closed, like always. Christine raised a tentative hand to the door and knocked on it lightly. On the other side she heard a muffled "come in." It sounded like Emma had been crying, for her voice was weak and not very loud.

Christine opened the door quietly and stepped inside. When she saw Emma, her heart nearly broke. She was curled up in the fetal position on her bed, sobbing into her knees.

When she heard the door open, she looked over at her mother, and only glanced at Erik who was behind her.

She looked her mother straight in the eyes and said in a choked voice, "I remember."

**It is a fanfiction sin to read and not review!** Please?


	15. Remembrance

**A/N: Well, everybody, I am finally updating! haha. But I thank ALL of you who reviewed! My pathetic pleading helped! lol. No really, I appreciate all of the reviews, and I hope you all continue to leave them! And this is NOT the end, but it's close. : )**

**Chapter 15**

My head swam with many thoughts, as I awoke sitting in my bed.

My nightmares… they had done it; they had triggered my thoughts long gone. How... I'm not sure. But they were all real, they were all so real and somehow I just knew them to be true. Then it all hit me, all that I had forgotten came pouring back, flooding my mind. My family... my mother and how she murdered my father… and I remembered Erik! Oh god how mean I must have been to him! But I remembered him, and how he raised me, of how he loved me... I desperately hoped that he did not hate me now, after all, I had treated him like a monster, and I do not think of him in that way at all! He is like a father to me.

My memories hit me hard, making my head pound with everything that I had forgotten. It was far from pleasant, to be sure, but it was well worth it. Had I not remembered… who knows what would have happened. I probably would never have remembered Erik, shunning him away from me. That would have been horrible, to say the least. Erik was a very important part of my life, and really made me who I was… and am. Without him, I don't know what I would do.

But, no point in thinking on the "what ifs?" I remember. And that's all that counts.

"I remember…" I said quietly as my mother and Erik entered the room.

They stared at me incredulously, both of their eyes wide in disbelief. Of course, this was expected, for I fairly believed it myself.

"What?" my mother managed to stammer out.

"I… I remember… my past, I mean. I remember everything," I replied with a sad smile.

Suddenly my mother's eyes filled up with tears and she ran over to my bed, wrapping me up in her arms. I hugged her back lovingly, joyous that I could finally remember her and all that she had done for me. Actually, I felt quite guilty for the way that I had treated her, blaming her for bad things done. But all that was in the past now, I would no longer take anything in my life for granted.

"Oh chérie," my mother whispered into my hair. "You have no idea how happy I am right now… I really am so glad. And I am so sorry for everything. For not listening to you when I should have, for…"

"Mother," I stated, interrupting her. "It is fine, really. No need for apologies."

"Oh Emma!" she cried as she hugged me even tighter. "I was so worried…"

"I know, I know," I whispered softly as I closed my eyes, relishing in the moment.

Then Christine moved from me and backed away from the bed. It was then that I saw Erik, standing in the doorway at a loss of what to do. He stood there awkwardly, making it all to apparent that he wanted to come to me, but wouldn't dare to move his feet.

I sighed. "Erik, you can come near me. I daresay I am not poisonous."

Immediately Erik's masked face became a slight shade of pink, and I felt quite bad for embarrassing him so, but at least it got him to come towards me. He at last stopped besides my bed, still unsure of what to do. Once more I sighed, but did not say anything as I stood from my bed and gave him a long overdue hug.

After a moment, he finally regained his senses and hugged me in return.

"Erik," I whispered, "I am sorry for the way that I treated you. I had no right to do so. You truly are like a father to me."

"Shh," was all that Erik said.

Despite what was going on, I smiled anyways, realizing that Erik was still the recluse that he had been. He was still the man of little words, but with a lot to say.

When we at last moved away from each other, I looked at both of them, Erik and Christine, and gave them an apologetic smile.

"Well, I suppose that I should get caught up on the recent events, since I feel as though I am missing something."

A few hours later, I sat on the couch, feeling quite dumbfounded. I learned a many things, like how the Opera House was reopening in a few days and how Christine and Erik had gotten married. I was quite excited on both of these things, for now I had a father again, and one that I truly did love. Also, I had always wished to see the Opera reopen; wanting to see what both of my parents lives had been about before I was born. Actually, I wanted to get into the business as well, since Erik had expertly trained me already.

"I cannot believe that you two are married," I had gaily to them.

They both smiled sweetly at each other and nodded.

"And I missed it…" I added sadly.

"Don't feel bad darling," my mother replied. "It was just a small wedding, actually, a _very _small wedding. Our only guests were Nadir, Antoinette, and Meg. Really, you missed nothing at all."

"Still, I feel as though I should have been there. I am your daughter after all," I pressed on.

"Really Emma," Erik said. "It was just a small get together." He paused. "Here, if you still feel like you missed anything, your mother and I can easily repeat it; it was short enough."

Then he rose from his seat and grabbed my mother by the hand, pulling her up as well. She laughed happily as Erik took her by the hand and stood opposite of her, repeating the lines that the minister had said years earlier.

As I watched the two of them, Erik wooing my mother, Christine smiling dreamily at him… it all seemed too good to be true. My mother was finally happy again, smiling like she had used to so long ago. I could not help but smile at them, but I felt a somewhat of a loss that I had missed the two of them bond so closely together.

They finally came to the end of their vows and then Erik kissed the blushing bride. At the end, I couldn't help but clap playfully at their performance, glad that they had repeated their wedding just for me.

I had always dreamed about having a happy family. Perhaps now that dream could become a reality.

**NOT the end!**

**Please leave a review!** Pretty please? With Erik and a dead fop on top?


	16. Dear

**A/N: sorry for the long wait! I send you all my deepest apologies! But i thank each and every one of you who reviewed! I love you all! Please enjoy the chapter and let me know what you think!**

**Chapter 16**

The following week, the Opera Populaire at last had its' grand opening, with the showing of _Aida_. And to the joy of both Christine and Erik, the two owners, it was a smashing success. In the newspapers, every critic acclaimed the new theater and its' stars, especially Christine Daae, the new diva of the Opera House.

Christine refused to admit that she had done a wonderful job, keeping herself humble and kind. Even the ballet dancers were praised for their good work and amazing choreography – which in turn causeed Mme. Giry to be hailed as well.

The new lead tenor was a man by the name of Charles Frederic, a five-and-twenty year old of surprising talent. He, as well, was praised for his good work, with the reporters saying, "his countenance and talent matches Mme. Daae perfectly", also saying that they were "a great match."

The opening of the Opera was a great success and it made everyone involved beam with happiness.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o00o

"The show starts in five everyone! First scene, ready yourselves!"

The ballet dancers scurried across the stage, positioning themselves for their first performance of the night. Mr. Frederic prepared himself for his performance as well, making the first singing appearance of the night.

I watched all this play out from the side, watching eagerly as the curtains began to open up, revealing a full house of extravagant guests. The music began, and the dancers moved about the stage in their routine. Mr. Frederic – Charles, as I like to call him – walked forwards with striking steps, each one as graceful as a swan. As I watched and heard him sing, my heart began to soar, feeling each resounding note flow through my head. His voice was beautiful, like that of an angels; it was almost as good as Eriks' – although he still had a long way to go.

As his performance came to an end, and the applause of the theater grew to a roar, he came off stage and the next scene began.

I met him on the side of stage, greeting him with a much-needed kiss. When we drew apart, he was breathing very hard – mainly from his previous performance, however.

We were standing in the crevasse of the curtains, hiding from the wandering eyes of our peers. "You did great," I whispered to him.

He took a deep breath, noting out surroundings. "Why must we keep our love a secret? I care for you and you I; why must we hide what we have discovered?"

I sighed as I shook my head. "You know Erik… he would never agree to it."

"Why does he need to? You are a grown woman, able to make your own choices. He cannot stop the way you feel."

"Charles," I said firmly, "we have had this conversation many times before, and my views are still the same. We can let my family know when the entire buzz about the Opera House dies down. He has enough to deal with at the moment, and I don't want to hinder him any further."

Charles at last gave a sigh of resignation. He grabbed my hand as he said, "Alright, I shall abide to your wishes, Emma. But just know that I am not happy with it, and that as soon as things do die down, we will tell them immediately."

I laughed happily as I threw my arms around him. "Thank you! It means so much to me to know that you understand – and I promise to tell them then, I will."

He gave me one last kiss before he had to leave me again to go back and perform with my mother. I watched him with longing in my eyes; I really did want to let my parents know about our relationship – I suspected my mother knew – but I knew that Erik would never want him with me or any man for that matter. Charles just didn't realize how protective Erik was of the women in his life and how dangerous he could turn at the last second.

I knew that it was wise to keep it a secret, but I just wished that Charles did as well. I sighed as I turned away from the stage. Maybe I was over thinking how Erik would react to the whole situation; maybe he would give me his consent to be with him freely – I could only hope.

0o0o0o0ooo0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

After the performance that night, I snuck through the backstage and into Charles' dressing room. I knocked lightly on he door, whispering that it was I and not the pushy guests.

He opened the door a crack, making sure that it was just me as I had said and then he let me in, closing the door quickly so that no one else could get in. I greeted him with a hug, and then handed him the present that I had brought him. It was a single deep red rose with a black ribbon tied around the stem.

"It's beautiful," he replied as he fingered the ribbon.

I shrugged indifferently. "It was just something that Erik always gave to my mother after a performance; it's like a tradition."

"Well it is truly beautiful – just like you," he whispered in my ear as he began to kiss my neck. I giggled lightly as I playfully told him to stop. But he didn't and kept on playfully kissing me in different spots.

At that moment however, there was a quick knock on the door and then it opened up. Suddenly Erik stepped in saying something about "damn reporters" and then he closed his door with his back to us. I frozen to the spot, with Charles' arms around me and I knew that the second that Erik turned around, there would be some explaining to do and some shouting. And I was right – the second that Erik saw us in our position, his eyes' clouded with an intense fury and his hands clenched into fists. He approached us hauntingly, taking menacing steps.

When he spoke, his voice what quiet and harsh. "Just what do you think you're doing to Emma, Mr. Frederic?"

Charles immediately stepped away from me, shuffling his feet. "Um… I… I was just…"

"_Enjoying_ her?" spat Erik.

Charles' eyes widened at his murderous gaze. "No, no sir!"

Eriks' gaze didn't change. "So she is unsatisfactory to you?"

He frantically shook his head. "N-No."

Erik cocked his head to the side. "So which was is it then? You really need to make up your mind. Do you enjoy her or not?"

Charles thought about this for a moment and he looked over at me, hoping for an answer, but I was of no help; I was still too scared at what Erik might do to even speak.

"I-I like her very much, sir," answered Charles finally, hoping that he had chosen his right words.

Erik raised his eyes in mockery. "And does she feel the same?"

His gaze turned towards me, and I swallowed tightly, trying to rediscover my ability to speak. But I found that I couldn't even open my mouth, and so I just dumbly nodded my head.

"How long has this been going on?" he asked harshly, although his murderous gaze had lightened slightly, now being only an "if-you-say-the-wrong-thing-I'll-break-both-your-legs" kind of look.

It was Charles who answered. "Ever since I got the job, sir."

Erik had to keep his mouth from falling open. "That would make it for about five months then?"

"Yes, sir," Charles answered bravely.

Erik swallowed tightly. "How serious is it?"

"We haven't talked about it yet, sir," he answered.

Erik closed his eyes as he pierced his lips together. Charles' eyes widened at the implied meaning.

"Oh! Oh, no! D-Definitely not, sir! Never! Not once!" rambled Charles.

Then Erik turned his attention back to me. "I will have to speak to your mother about this, Emma. And until then, you are not to see him."

"But –" I stammered, having found my voice once again.

"No, that it final. Come along, we will leave Mr. Frederic to himself," stated Erik.

I shot an apologetic look towards Charles as I followed Erik out. I knew that I was in deep trouble now, if only my mother would be able to talk some sense into him.

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	17. Agreement

**A/N: Thanks goes out to everyone who reviewed! I appreciate and love each and every one of them! Sorry this chappie is sort've short... but there are only about two or three chapters left... It's all coming to an end! So please enjoy this chapter and let me know what your thoughts are by leaving a nice review: ) Thxs!**

**Chapter 17**

The walk with Erik to my mother's room was taken in complete silence. Mainly, I was too disheartened to even try to attempt to talk with him about Charles. Even before Charles and I had officially started seeing each other, I knew that Erik would not be pleased with the decision. In him, there was a sense that all human beings were evil, or had the capacity of being so. Thus, he was an antisocial man and a recluse. This idea that was firmly placed in his mind paired with a sort of fatherly overprotective mindset, was the root of my suspicions that he would not react well – and I turned out to be correct.

When we got to my mother's room, Erik opened the door hastily without even the slightest knock. On the inside, my mother was sitting at the vanity, brushing her hair, but when she heard the door open, she immediately turned her head, a smile playing her lips when she saw that it was us.

She rose to her feet and came over to greet us properly. She gave Erik a chaste kiss on the lips and she gave me a hug, while I quietly told her how great she did tonight. After she had pulled away, she began to notice the tenseness was that floating about in the room. Raising her eyebrows, she crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Erik, demanding an answer without so much as a word.

"You think it my fault, no?" Erik asked crossly.

Christine only cocked her head to the side ever so slightly, still giving him that same look.

Erik was not in a very good mood, and so he rose to the occasion, pointing a finger in my direction, only a couple of feet away.

"Your daughter, Christine, has been fooling around with our lead tenor! For five months! Behind our backs!" He punctuated each fault with a hiss.

I turned on him angrily as well, just as he had done me. "Fooling around? We are doing much more than that, I can assure you!"

"If he so much as has touched you in any way, I swear to God I'll kill the little maggot!"

I opened my arms towards him. "We already told you that nothing like that has happened! I was raised better than that."

Before Erik could respond, my mother's voice spoke in. "That is enough!" she yelled at the two of us. "Both of you need to calm down and tell me, slowly, what has happened."

Making sure that Erik couldn't twist the reality of the situation, I willingly spoke first. "Mother, I am dating M. Charles Frederic and have been for five months. I was going to tell you and Erik this after all the buzz about the Opera House died down a bit, but before that could happen, Erik accidentally walked in on the two of us cuddling, and nothing more, in his dressing room. From there, Erik completely went ballistic and may have possibly lost his mind."

"I am perfectly well, my dear Emma, you can be sure of that! And that man is not deserving of your special affections!"

Christine placed a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to calm him. "Now, now, Erik, let's be reasonable about all this. If Emma is really interested in this young man, then who's to say that she cannot see him?"

I smiled proudly up at Erik, knowing that my mother would indeed take my side. But before my pride could accumulate any higher, Erik said, "Me."

Then once again, I threw my hands up into the air. My mother, I noticed, rolled her eyes, but she still stayed calm for all our sakes. "Erik, she is a grown woman and is perfectly capable of making her own decisions about who she wants to date. And if that is indeed, M. Frederic," I eagerly nodded my head, "then neither of us are going to tell her otherwise." My mother then lowered her voice down to a whisper as she spoke into Erik's ear. "And if you disagree with this negotiation, then you will be sleeping all by yourself for, oh, who knows long."

At this, Erik's eyes widened and he cleared his throat in an attempt to clear his head as well. "Well, Emma, after careful consideration, I have decided that you may go on seeing this man, if you would like to. But know that it is at my mercy that he abides."

My countenance now beamed with happiness, and despite our former arguments, I threw my arms around Erik and gave him a hug, as well as saying thank you. I then did the same to my mother, who was smiling as well, and then as quickly as I deemed possible, I was out of the room, off to tell the good news to Charles.

When I got to his dressing room and entered inside, he was pacing his room in large strides, looking quite dismayed. As the door shut behind me, he looked up hopefully, wondering what the decision was.

I smiled brightly at him as well, and upon seeing how ecstatic I was, he too broke into a wide grin and rushed over to me, sweeping me into his arms.

"Oh, my dear, sweet, Emma!" he declared as he hugged me tightly. "I assume that all is well with M. Erik and Mme. Daae? This is splendid, my love! Now we no longer have to hide away in the shadows from peering eyes! Isn't it a joyous relief, Emma?"

I nodded my head earnestly into the crook of his neck, just enjoying the feel of his body against my own. Now that it was all right with my mother and Erik, it felt as though a great burden had been lifted off of my shoulders. No longer would I have to fear that someone would see us, or glancing over my shoulder every second to make sure that no one was around. What a great relief it was to know that Erik was not against my seeing Charles. Now, perhaps, we could take the next step in our relationship.

**Tis a fanfiction sin to read and not review!**


	18. End

_**A/N:** Well, this is the final chapter... I know it seems a bit soon, but I just don't know where else to take this story so this is what I came up with. I hope you like it and I thank every single one of you who reviewed during these two stories! It was quite the ride and you all mean SO much to me! THANK YOU!_

_All my love,_

_E. Ll_

**Chapter 18:** As the final bell tolls… 

As the final bell tolls, who will be standing there with me? I like to think that in whatever path of life I choose, my family will be there to support me. I have seen the relationship Erik and my mother share, and the only thing I want in life is that, too. I want someone who will be there for me, who will support me, who will encourage me, and who will love me. I have full belief in the fact that Charles is this man. And it is because of this reason that he and I will marry next year. There was no spectacular proposal or any of that nonsense. Instead, we had a very mature conversation about the future, and we both agreed upon marriage. Now come next year, I will be Mrs. Frederic!

Erik and my mother are both equally excited. They have come to love Charles as if he was their own son and are very proud of me for making such a fine choice.

Oh! Some other great news is that my mother is now pregnant! She is about six months along, and we are all hoping for a boy… what I wouldn't give to have a little baby brother! And, perhaps, someday I will have a child of my own. Of course, Charles is dying for a little baby son, and I, too, wish for such a thing at one point or another. After all, who doesn't want an heir to their name?

I am also continuing on in my Opera career. At the moment, I am an understudy to my mother and have my first big supporting role in two seasons time. The show will be called _The Phantom of the Opera_ and will charter Erik's life. I will get to play Meg Giry! Of course, the real Meg was first considered for the role, but she is pregnant, as well, and will not be continuing on in her career. Thus, I have an exciting role next to my mother! It will so fantastic!

The future appears to be promising for my family and me. After all that I have been through, all that I have put my family through, I am glad indeed to finally see the sun shining down upon us once all again.

_One more thank you to everyone! You're all amazing!_


End file.
